China raises the drawbridge
Beijing has imposed a “de facto international travel ban” that prevents citizens from going overseas for “non-essential” reasons as it “ramps up” enforcement of its zero-Covid policy, says Jessie Yeung on CNN. There is speculation that officials are cracking down because growing numbers are trying to leave after two years of draconian controls that have included citywide lockdowns, mass testing and mandatory quarantine. At present, an estimated 220 million people are in full or partial lockdown in 32 cities. The administration says the ban is necessary to “reduce the risk of infection”, but Beijing may simply not want its citizens to leave.
China has a long history of isolation and outbound travel was “heavily restricted” until the early 2000s when incomes were rising and the rules were relaxed. According to official data, Chinese citizens made 670 million overseas trips in 2019; last year inbound and outbound trips totalled around 73 million. Even before last week’s announcement, travel was hard. Borders are still largely shut to outsiders and those entering are subject to strict 21-day quarantines. Last year China issued 7.98 million documents for foreign travel, less than 6% of those issued in 2019.
Reports continue to surface on social media of people having passport applications rejected and of students having their passports clipped as they try to board planes, say Qiao Long and Chingman on Radio Free Asia. One employee at an overseas study consultancy says Beijing doesn’t want citizens being inculcated with Western values. Xi Jinping’s explicit aim is to make China self-reliant, says Michael White in Financial Review. As the Chinese economy slows and investors “turn to US and European markets where interest rates are rising”, it has become all the more important to retain wealth and talent. No wonder Beijing is also making it harder to obtain investment migration visas to Australia, Canada and elsewhere.