After almost three years of little to no business, Thai tour guide operator Anchalee Vittayanuntapornkul is more than relieved that Chinese tourists will soon be allowed to travel again. “I’m sure if you ask anyone in the tourism industry, the only nationality that they are waiting to see come back is the Chinese tourists,” says Anchalee, who is based in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand. On Sunday, China scrapped the requirement for inbound travellers to quarantine, making holidaying abroad much easier. The policy change is expected to boost the tourism sector…
Day: January 7, 2023
After protests, some Chinese cities lift fireworks bans ahead of Lunar New Year
Authorities in some Chinese cities have lifted fireworks bans in the wake of nationwide protests and ahead of Lunar New Year on Jan. 22, while some authorities have doubled down on the ban, punishing local residents for setting off fireworks as an example, according to Chinese media reports. Local governments in Dongying and Binzhou cities in the eastern province of Shandong have announced via their official websites that fireworks and firecrackers will be allowed to usher in the Year of the Rabbit. And authorities in Beijing and the northeastern port…
North Korean farmers question prioritization of ‘cows over people’
As another bitter winter grips North Korea, authorities are ensuring that its bullocks – working cows that pull plows and do other chores – are getting fed, even though it’s not doing the same for its citizens, sources in the country say. Sources told RFA that caretakers are receiving plenty of feed for the bullocks on collective farms, while annual rations for farmers have been halved, owing to a poor harvest. The move seems to be aimed at boosting harvest production. A source from South Pyongan province who declined to…
China drops quarantine for visitors as lunar new year travel kicks off amid Covid surge
China has lifted quarantine requirements for inbound travellers, ending almost three years of self-imposed isolation even as the country battles a surge in Covid cases. Beijing last month began a dramatic dismantling of a hardline virus strategy that had enforced mandatory quarantines and gruelling lockdowns. The containment policy has tanked China’s economy and sparked nationwide protests. In the final unravelling of those rules, from Sunday inbound travellers to China are no longer required to quarantine. Since March 2020, all arrivals had been forced to undergo isolation at centralised government facilities.…
Thousands of Filipinos March in Reverence of Catholic Icon
MANILA, Philippines — Tens of thousands of Catholic faithful walked through the streets of Manila early Sunday in reverence of a historic statue of Jesus Christ, which is believed to have miraculous powers. The “walk of faith,” which church officials estimated attracted more than 80,000 people, began after a midnight Mass for the so-called Black Nazarene statue. Many Filipinos believe touching or getting close to the statue can lead to the healing of otherwise incurable ailments and other good fortune. Evangeline Rugas, 59, was among the worshippers attending the open-air…
Western Australia in Grip of ‘Devastating’ Flood Emergency
SYDNEY — Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Saturday his government was ready to provide whatever support was needed to residents of Western Australia state as record-breaking floods isolated far-flung communities there. The crisis in Kimberley — an area almost three times the size of the United Kingdom — was sparked this week by severe weather system Ellie, a former tropical cyclone that brought heavy rain to the vast region. Among the worst-hit locations was Fitzroy Crossing, a town of around 1,300 people where supplies were being airlifted in due…
China Suspends Social Media Accounts of COVID Policy Critics
BEIJING — China has suspended or closed the social media accounts of more than 1,000 critics of the government’s policies on the COVID-19 outbreak, as the country moves to roll back harsh antivirus restrictions. The popular Sina Weibo social media platform said it had addressed 12,854 violations including attacks on experts, scholars and medical workers and issued temporary or permanent bans on 1,120 accounts. The ruling Communist Party had largely relied on the medical community to justify its tough lockdowns, quarantine measures and mass testing, almost all of which it…
China’s ‘Great Migration’ Kicks Off Under Shadow of COVID
SHANGHAI — China on Saturday marked the first day of “chun yun,” the 40-day period of Lunar New Year travel known pre-pandemic as the world’s largest annual migration of people, bracing for a huge increase in travelers and the spread of COVID-19 infections. This Lunar New Year public holiday, which officially begins January 21, will be the first since 2020 without domestic travel restrictions. Over the last month China has seen the dramatic dismantling of its “zero-COVID” regime following historic protests against a policy that included frequent testing, restricted movement,…
How Beijing Accidentally Ended the Zero COVID Policy
Advertisement In December 2022, China finally ended its draconian zero COVID policy. Following the sudden opening, the number of positive cases and deaths skyrocketed. The reasoning behind this change has been baffling scholars. Not long ago, the official media praised the zero COVID policy as “most economical and most effective.” Perhaps more surprising was that there seemed to be little preparation for the opening. Soon after the opening, hospitals faced overcrowding, and medicines were sold out. The zero COVID policy certainly demonstrated the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)’s mobilization capability. Thus,…
Chinese navy drills reveal greater ability to project power deeper into Pacific, analysts say
The strike group, described as China’s “most powerful” by nationalist tabloid Global Times, sailed into the Western Pacific through the Miyako Strait off Japan on December 16. The flotilla returned to the East China Sea on January 1. The Liaoning (left) receives supplies during open-sea combat training. Photo: Xinhua The two-week exercises featured a series of naval manoeuvres and flight operations, including a record 320 or so take-offs and landings of both fighters and helicopters, according to the Japanese defence ministry which monitored the drills. Advertisement That indicates the “sortie…