This is the first time in three years that Hong Kong and mainland China have been quarantined.
Seven border crossings between Hong Kong and mainland China officially resumed full operation on Sunday (January 8), and residents of the two places ushered in the first quarantine-free cross-border travel in nearly three years since the global pandemic of the new crown epidemic.
Hundreds of passengers took the first train to Hong Kong’s Lok Ma Chau feeder port in the early morning. The moment the first train arrived at 6:07 opened, the passengers got off the train and proceeded to the port to be opened in a hurry but in an orderly manner. The railway staff who greeted the passengers on the spot distributed free masks and hand sanitizers to them.
Passengers who are about to enter the mainland across the border said that they are “like returning home” at this moment.
Starting from Sunday, Hong Kong residents can enter the mainland of China through three land ports including the Lok Ma Chau Spur Line Control Point, Shenzhen Bay and Man Kam To. Among them, Lok Ma Chau will carry 70% of the passenger flow to the Mainland during the first phase of customs clearance.
In addition, about 10,000 people can travel from Hong Kong to the mainland through ports such as the Hong Kong Airport, the China-Hong Kong Ferry Terminal, the Hong Kong-Macau Ferry Terminal and the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Port Bridge.
The customs clearance between the two places coincided with the sharp increase in the number of new crown virus infections after the lifting of the “clearing” epidemic prevention policy in mainland China, but many people were not deterred by it. relatives and friends meet.
“urgent”
Before the opening time of the Lok Ma Chau and Shenzhen Bay ports in the morning, passengers had already lined up in many long queues, but the order was generally good.
“It’s been three years, there’s no time to delay,” said Mr Ye, who left Hong Kong for mainland China on Sunday morning.
He said that he is a driver of a cross-border vehicle between China and Hong Kong, and his work and life have been greatly affected by the epidemic for several years, but he still expresses his “gratitude” for customs clearance.
Passengers passing through the customs must issue a 48-hour nucleic acid test negative certificate
Cai Xuecheng, a mainlander working in Hong Kong, chose to return to the mainland via Lok Ma Chau on the first day of customs clearance. He told BBC Chinese that the customs clearance arrangement made him feel a lot easier.
He said that he had returned to the mainland a few months ago, “It was very troublesome at the time, and he had to be quarantined, and then he had to be quarantined when he returned to his hometown… This time it was very easy, and then when he came back (Hong Kong), it would be very easy.”
He said that for the epidemic, everyone now feels that it is “almost (over)”, so he welcomes customs clearance and hopes to “come back in good health.”
Deng Bingqiang, Secretary of the Hong Kong Security Bureau, pointed out that as of 10 a.m. on Sunday, about 7,000 people had left Hong Kong and headed north, of which 5,000 people passed through the Lok Ma Chau Spur Line Control Point.
All cross-border passengers need to issue a negative nucleic acid test certificate for the new coronavirus within 48 hours before they can cross the border.
On the first day of customs clearance, 70% of passengers with successful reservations will enter the Chinese mainland through the Lok Ma Chau Port.
The chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Lee Kar-chao, said customs clearance without quotas would eventually “certainly occur”.
“Psychologically Prepared” for the Epidemic
According to Hong Kong media reports, more than 6,600 tourists from the mainland made an appointment to enter Hong Kong on the same day.
Many mainland Chinese tourists go to Hong Kong to visit relatives or travel, and some tourists who entered Hong Kong expressed their excitement about customs clearance.
“The moment I stepped into Hong Kong, I felt: ‘I’m finally back!'” Ms. Zhang, a Shenzhen resident, told the media after entering the country from Lok Ma Chau.
She said that she and her two children used to travel frequently between the two places, but living in Longgang, Shenzhen, she has not been to Hong Kong for three years.
Regarding the current COVID-19 epidemic in Hong Kong, she said that she is not worried, “It’s enough to protect yourself.”
Some visitors to Hong Kong said that the appointment and clearance process after customs clearance was very smooth.
“Actually, when I made the appointment, I thought the number of places would be full,” said Ms. Hu, who also entered the country from Lok Ma Chau. When she made an appointment one day in advance, she found that there were still a large number of places available for appointment.
She said that she returned to mainland China from the United States and then traveled to Hong Kong. Although the number of infections continued to increase during this period, her personal perception felt that the epidemic was “almost over.”
Some passengers said that customs clearance arrangements are a very important consideration in their decision to come back.
On the other hand, quite a few tourists return to Mainland China from foreign countries via Hong Kong.
Mr. Lin, who entered Hong Kong from Papua New Guinea, returned to mainland China via Lok Ma Chau today. After that, he said that he would return to his hometown Fujian to celebrate the Lunar New Year. He said the timing of customs clearance before the Spring Festival is “good”.
Regarding the epidemic in mainland China, Mr. Lin, who has not returned to China for three years, said: “Since I have returned home, I am not afraid of this.”
Hong Kong Airport adopted diversion treatment for transit passengers on Sunday, and many passengers returned to mainland China via Hong Kong from various countries. Due to the sharp reduction of flights in the past few years due to the epidemic, the price of direct air tickets to China has soared, while the air tickets to Hong Kong from various countries have soared. relatively cheap.
Some passengers said that customs clearance arrangements are a very important consideration in their decision to come back.
“We were so excited that we could finally go home,” Ms. Zhang, who arrived in Hong Kong from Singapore and was about to transfer to her hometown of Qingdao, told BBC Chinese.
She said that during the three-year period of customs closure, there were many uncertainties for a Chinese like her in a foreign country-flights were cut off at any time, and the cumbersome isolation policies of various provinces and cities in China made it difficult for her to return to China.
Ms. Zhang knows that the new crown epidemic is currently breaking out in China, and she is “mentally prepared” for this situation.
She said that the reason for her return to China this time was that her family was infected with the new crown and was in a serious condition in the hospital, “so I must come back as soon as possible at this time to give them support and strength-it seems that at this time, family affection can exceed any something.”
to worry about
China abandoned the “dynamic zeroing” last month and greatly relaxed the new crown epidemic prevention policy. After that, the number of infections rose sharply, causing concerns from the outside world.
Since the official has stopped conducting universal nucleic acid testing, World Health Organization (WHO) officials also pointed out that China’s definition of death from the new crown is “too narrow”; therefore, it is difficult to fully assess the epidemic situation and actual impact in the country. There are reports that the Chinese medical system is under pressure.
The WHO earlier called on China to disclose more comprehensive epidemic data as soon as possible.
Many European countries have issued travel warnings to their citizens, pointing out that the outbreak of the new crown epidemic in mainland China has overwhelmed the medical system, and foreign tourists may not be able to obtain medical assistance in time in an emergency, calling on citizens not to travel to China temporarily.
France, Spain and Italy have introduced measures to impose quarantines on travelers from China.
The German Minister of Health said last week that passengers from China will have to undergo “at least one quick test” before entering the country, but the final specific decision is yet to be made after the German government evaluates it. Luxembourg has said it will follow Germany in a decision.
The United States, Japan, South Korea, etc. have announced earlier that passengers from China must issue a negative result of the new crown test before departure.
Hong Kong officials said earlier that they are confident that the epidemic in Hong Kong is under control due to the high vaccination rate in Hong Kong and the fact that Hong Kong is very close to the degree of complete opening up overseas.
More than 410,000 people have made appointments to enter mainland China over the next eight weeks, with the most number of appointments being made in the first two days of the Lunar New Year, officials said.
The Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Lee Ka-chao, said that the ultimate goal is to clear customs without quotas.
Li Jiachao said customs clearance without quotas “will definitely occur”
“Our deployment is to fully return to normal, so arrangements that do not require any number of people (limitation) will definitely occur,” Li Jiachao, who cleared customs at the Lok Ma Chau branch line control point on Sunday, told the media.
He said that he hopes that this day will be “as soon as possible”, but it must be decided according to the discussions between the governments of the two places.