BEIJING: China lifted quarantine Sunday for incoming travellers, ending nearly three years of self-imposed isolation even as the country battles a rise in Covid cases.
Beijing began a dramatic hardline dismantling last month zero covid strategy who had imposed mandatory quarantines and grueling confinements.
The lockdown policy had a huge impact on the world’s second-largest economy and generated resentment across society that led to nationwide protests just before it was appeased.
When those rules were finally dismantled on Sunday, incoming travelers to China were no longer required to self-quarantine, after nearly three years of being subject to varying lengths of mandatory isolation.
At Pudong International Airport in Shanghai, a woman named Pang told AFP she was delighted with the change in rules.
“I think it’s really good that politics has changed now, it’s really human,” she told AFP.
“It’s a necessary step I think. Covid is now normalized and after this hurdle everything will be fine,” she said.
Chinese people rushed to plan trips abroad after authorities announced last month that the quarantine would be dropped, sending inquiries on popular travel websites skyrocketing.
But the expected rise in visitor numbers has led more than a dozen countries to impose mandatory Covid tests on travelers to the world’s most populous nation as it battles its worst outbreak.
China has called travel restrictions imposed by other countries “unacceptable”, although it continues to largely prevent foreign tourists and international students from traveling to the country.
China’s Covid outbreak is set to worsen ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday this month, when millions are expected to travel from hard-hit megacities to the countryside to visit older relatives vulnerable.
And Beijing has taken steps to curb criticism on its bumpy road out of zero-Covid, with its Twitter-like Weibo service saying it recently banned 1,120 accounts for “offences against experts and scholars”.
At Beijing Airport on Sunday, the barriers that once separated international and domestic arrivals disappeared, as did the “tall whites” – staff in hazmat suits have long been a part of life in zero-Covid China.
And at Shanghai airport, a man named Yang who had arrived from the United States said he was unaware the rules had changed.
“I had no idea,” he told AFP.
“I would consider myself extremely lucky if I only needed to quarantine for two days, it turned out I didn’t have to quarantine at all, and no paperwork, we just walked out like that , just like in the past,” he added.
“I’m quite happy that I don’t need to be in quarantine,” another woman who was picked up by her boyfriend, who declined to be named, told AFP.
“Who wants to be in quarantine? No one.
And across Asia, tourist hubs are bracing for a surge in Chinese visitors.
In Tokyo, cartoonist Masashi Higashitani was dusting off his Chinese skills as he prepared for more holidaymakers.
While he was delighted with China’s reopening, he also admitted to some trepidation.
“I wonder if an influx of too many of them could not exceed our capacities. I also fear that we will have to pay more attention to anti-virus measures,” he told AFP. .
In the semi-autonomous city of Hong Kong in southern China, Sunday also saw a major easing of strict restrictions on cross-border travel with the Chinese mainland.
Hong Kong’s recession-hit economy is desperate to reconnect with its greatest source of growth, and families separated by the border are eagerly awaiting the Lunar New Year reunion.
Up to 50,000 Hong Kong residents can now cross the border daily at three land checkpoints after checking in online.
Another 10,000 people are allowed to enter by sea, air or bridge without having to register in advance, city leader John Lee said.
At the Lok Ma Chau checkpoint near the city of Shenzhen on Sunday, a postgraduate student from mainland China surnamed Zeng told AFP he was happy to cross without further restrictions.
“I’m happy as long as I don’t have to be quarantined, it was so unbearable,” Zeng told AFP.
He said he was confined to his quarantine room, where the internet signal was weak, for 21 days the last time he visited the mainland in early 2022.
An 80-year-old traveler named Liu said he was returning to Hong Kong from the mainland to celebrate Chinese New Year with his family.
“I hope the procedure can be further simplified,” Liu told AFP.
“It’s a bit complicated for an 80-year-old like me.”
Beijing began a dramatic hardline dismantling last month zero covid strategy who had imposed mandatory quarantines and grueling confinements.
The lockdown policy had a huge impact on the world’s second-largest economy and generated resentment across society that led to nationwide protests just before it was appeased.
When those rules were finally dismantled on Sunday, incoming travelers to China were no longer required to self-quarantine, after nearly three years of being subject to varying lengths of mandatory isolation.
At Pudong International Airport in Shanghai, a woman named Pang told AFP she was delighted with the change in rules.
“I think it’s really good that politics has changed now, it’s really human,” she told AFP.
“It’s a necessary step I think. Covid is now normalized and after this hurdle everything will be fine,” she said.
Chinese people rushed to plan trips abroad after authorities announced last month that the quarantine would be dropped, sending inquiries on popular travel websites skyrocketing.
But the expected rise in visitor numbers has led more than a dozen countries to impose mandatory Covid tests on travelers to the world’s most populous nation as it battles its worst outbreak.
China has called travel restrictions imposed by other countries “unacceptable”, although it continues to largely prevent foreign tourists and international students from traveling to the country.
China’s Covid outbreak is set to worsen ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday this month, when millions are expected to travel from hard-hit megacities to the countryside to visit older relatives vulnerable.
And Beijing has taken steps to curb criticism on its bumpy road out of zero-Covid, with its Twitter-like Weibo service saying it recently banned 1,120 accounts for “offences against experts and scholars”.
At Beijing Airport on Sunday, the barriers that once separated international and domestic arrivals disappeared, as did the “tall whites” – staff in hazmat suits have long been a part of life in zero-Covid China.
And at Shanghai airport, a man named Yang who had arrived from the United States said he was unaware the rules had changed.
“I had no idea,” he told AFP.
“I would consider myself extremely lucky if I only needed to quarantine for two days, it turned out I didn’t have to quarantine at all, and no paperwork, we just walked out like that , just like in the past,” he added.
“I’m quite happy that I don’t need to be in quarantine,” another woman who was picked up by her boyfriend, who declined to be named, told AFP.
“Who wants to be in quarantine? No one.
And across Asia, tourist hubs are bracing for a surge in Chinese visitors.
In Tokyo, cartoonist Masashi Higashitani was dusting off his Chinese skills as he prepared for more holidaymakers.
While he was delighted with China’s reopening, he also admitted to some trepidation.
“I wonder if an influx of too many of them could not exceed our capacities. I also fear that we will have to pay more attention to anti-virus measures,” he told AFP. .
In the semi-autonomous city of Hong Kong in southern China, Sunday also saw a major easing of strict restrictions on cross-border travel with the Chinese mainland.
Hong Kong’s recession-hit economy is desperate to reconnect with its greatest source of growth, and families separated by the border are eagerly awaiting the Lunar New Year reunion.
Up to 50,000 Hong Kong residents can now cross the border daily at three land checkpoints after checking in online.
Another 10,000 people are allowed to enter by sea, air or bridge without having to register in advance, city leader John Lee said.
At the Lok Ma Chau checkpoint near the city of Shenzhen on Sunday, a postgraduate student from mainland China surnamed Zeng told AFP he was happy to cross without further restrictions.
“I’m happy as long as I don’t have to be quarantined, it was so unbearable,” Zeng told AFP.
He said he was confined to his quarantine room, where the internet signal was weak, for 21 days the last time he visited the mainland in early 2022.
An 80-year-old traveler named Liu said he was returning to Hong Kong from the mainland to celebrate Chinese New Year with his family.
“I hope the procedure can be further simplified,” Liu told AFP.
“It’s a bit complicated for an 80-year-old like me.”
