I wouldn't say that thousands infection a day is ineffective. Tens to hundreds thousands infections and dozens deaths a day are.
"Creating martyrs" is critical psyop tool. It can't be ruled out completely that someone wants to create martyrs out of those victims of the fire.
Yes, people are not afraid to protest small grievances, contrary to Western MSM's propaganda. However, Chinese society is actually super-stable. First, most Chinese experienced the vast improvement of their living standards in the past 30 year, which was unprecedented in Chinese history. So most of them support their government. Second, China has 90% home ownership and the world's highest savings rate, almost all Chinese are stake-holders for a stable society. The last thing they want to see is their hard-owned fortunes destroyed in a "revolution".
For student protesters, the lesson of "we are hoping for bloodshed" should not be forgotten.
Besides vaccine and mask mandates, education is also crucial for any attempt to reopen: people should understand well why the stringent control policies are necessary.
