COVID-19 Spreads to Beijing’s Political Center, Traveling Residents Not Allowed to Return

COVID-19 Spreads to Beijing’s Political Center, Traveling Residents Not Allowed to Return
People queue for swab test for Covid-19 coronavirus in Beijing on November 1, 2021. (Photo by Noel Celis / AFP) (Photo by NOEL CELIS/AFP via Getty Images)
11/3/2021
Updated:
11/3/2021

Beijing residents, traveling outside their city, are not allowed to return to the capital as authorities tighten COVID-19 measures in response to a rising number of cases in 16 provinces.

Authorities announced on Nov. 1 that Beijingers who had left the city should not come back any time soon.

“If you have not yet returned to Beijing, please postpone your return to Beijing and cooperate with local prevention and control measures,” the Beijing Municipal Health Commission announced.

The restriction measures reportedly caught many traveling Beijingers off guard, especially those who had a negative nucleic acid test certificate earlier within the required time of 48 hours.

Social media posts reflected dissatisfaction over the orders among those traveling outside their city and an article titled “Why can’t I return to Beijing after I leave Beijing, stuck in a closed-loop” was widely circulated.

The Beijing authorities also requested that residents not leave the city unless necessary.

There have also been reports of more than 100 flights being canceled in Beijing.

The news comes as the ruling Chinese Communist Party’s top conference—the Sixth Plenary Session—is set to be held in Beijing on Nov. 8-11.

The authorities said that there were 93 new local symptomatic cases for Nov. 2 in the country, up from 54 a day earlier, reported Reuters which added that Beijing reported nine new local infections, the biggest one-day increase in the city this year. The actual total number of diagnosed cases in the city remains unclear.

On Oct. 29 a wedding photographer was diagnosed at the Beijing Hotel, less than a kilometer (0.6 miles) from the Chinese regime’s political center—Zhongnanhai and the Great Hall of the People.

“Now everyone in that area (around the hotel) have to be tested and need to be quarantined,” a Beijing resident surnamed Li told Radio Free Asia on Nov.1.

“People are denied entry to the city even their health codes are green,” Li said.

On Oct. 30, Beijing’s Tongzhou District announced that it had handled seven cases involving COVID-19 epidemics violations. Nine people had been administratively detained for reasons such as entering Beijing in violation of regulations and trying to avoid inspections.
COVID-19 is the disease caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus. It has killed over 5 million people around the globe according to John Hopkins University data published Tuesday.