After two years apart from his wife in mainland China, Hong Kong resident Cheung Seng-bun made sure he was among the first to cross the border after crossing points reopened on Sunday.
The ability of residents of the semi-autonomous southern Chinese city to cross is one of the most visible signs of the easing of China’s border restrictions, as travelers arriving from abroad are no longer required to self-quarantine.
“I’m hurrying back to her,” Cheung, carrying a heavy suitcase, told The Associated Press as he prepared to cross at Lok Ma Chau station.
However, travelers crossing between Hong Kong and mainland China are still required to show a negative COVID-19 test taken within the last 48 hours, a move China has protested when imposed by other countries.
Hong Kong has been hit hard by the virus, with its land and sea border checkpoints with the mainland largely closed for nearly three years. Despite the risk of new infections, the reopening that will allow tens of thousands of people who have made previous reservations online to cross each day is expected to provide a much-needed boost to Hong Kong’s tourism and retail sectors.
In a visit to the station on Sunday morning, Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee said the parties would continue to expand the number of crossing points from the current seven to a full 14.
“The goal is to return to normal pre-epidemic life as quickly as possible,” Lee told reporters. “We want to get the cooperation between the two parties back on track.”
The Communist Party newspaper Global Times quoted Tan Luming, a port official in Shenzhen on the border with Hong Kong, as saying about 200 passengers were expected to take the ferry to Hong Kong, while another 700 would travel in the other direction, in the first day of reopening. Tan said a steady increase in passenger numbers is expected in the coming days.
“I stayed up all night and got up at 4:00 am because I am so excited to go back to the mainland to see my 80-year-old mother,” said a Hong Kong woman identified only by her last name, Cheung. She arrived in Shenzhen, where she was presented with “roses and first-aid kits,” the newspaper said.
Limited ferry service from China’s Fujian province to Taiwan-controlled Kinmen Island off the Chinese coast has also been restored.
The border crossing with Russia at Suifenhe in the northern province of Heilongjiang also resumed normal operations, just in time for the opening of the ice festival in the capital Harbin, a major tourist attraction.
However, China’s borders remain largely sealed, with only a fraction of the previous number of international flights arriving at major airports.
The main Beijing Capital International Airport was expecting eight flights from abroad on Sunday, according to the airport. Shanghai, China’s largest city, received its first international flight under the new policy at 6:30 a.m., with only a handful of international flights to follow.
That number is expected to rise now, with booking inquiries for overseas flights overwhelming some online travel services ahead of the Lunar New Year travel rush later this month. Capital International is preparing to reopen arrivals halls that have been quiet for the better part of three years.
China now faces a surge in cases and hospitalizations in major cities and is bracing for further spread in less-developed areas with the start of China’s biggest holiday of the year set to kick off in the coming days.
Officials say they expect domestic air and rail travel to double over the same period last year, bringing the overall numbers closer to those of the 2019 holiday period before the pandemic hit.
Meanwhile, controversy continues over the testing requirements that foreign governments impose on Chinese travelers, most recently Germany and Sweden. China says they have no scientific basis and has threatened unspecified countermeasures.
Chinese health authorities publish a daily tally of new cases, severe cases, and deaths, but those numbers include only officially confirmed cases and use a very narrow definition of COVID-19-related deaths.
Officials say that since the government ended mandatory testing and allowed people with mild symptoms to get tested and convalesce at home, they can no longer provide a complete picture of the status of the latest outbreak.
Government spokesmen have said the situation is under control and reject accusations by the World Health Organization and others that it is not being transparent about the number of cases and deaths or providing other crucial information about the nature of the current outbreak that could lead to the apparition. of new variants.
Despite such claims, the Health Commission on Saturday implemented regulations to strengthen monitoring for viral mutations, including testing of urban wastewater. The sweeping rules called for increased data collection from hospitals and local government health departments and intensified checks on “pneumonia of unknown causes.”
Criticism has largely focused on the strict enforcement of the regulations, including unlimited travel restrictions that forced people to stay confined to their homes for weeks, sometimes locked inside without proper food or medical care.
Anger was also sparked by the requirement that anyone who has tested positive or has been in contact with such a person be confined for observation in a field hospital, where overcrowding, poor nutrition and hygiene.
The social and economic costs ultimately sparked rare street protests in Beijing and other cities, possibly influencing the Communist Party’s decision to quickly relax the strictest measures and re-prioritize growth.
As part of the latest changes, China will no longer file criminal charges against people accused of violating border quarantine rules, according to a notice issued on Saturday by five government departments.
Those currently in custody will be released and the seized assets will be returned, according to the notice.
The Transport Ministry on Friday called on travelers to reduce travel and gatherings, particularly if they involve the elderly, pregnant women, young children and people with underlying conditions.
