Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 253

90% of people in China province infected with Covid, says local health official

Almost 90% of people in China’s third most populous province have now been infected with Covid-19, a top local official has said, as the country battles an unprecedented surge in cases. Kan Quancheng, director of the health commission for central Henan province, told a press conference that “as of January 6, 2023, the province’s Covid infection rate is 89%”.With a population of 99.4 million, the

China reopens borders to tourists after three years of Covid closure

China has reopened its borders to international visitors for the first time since it imposed travel restrictions in March 2020. Incoming travellers will no longer need to quarantine - marking a significant change in the country's Covid policy as it battles a surge in cases. They will still require proof of a negative PCR test taken within 48 hours of travelling.The move has been welcomed by many

Torbjørn Færøvik: Hvorfor fortsetter Kina å lyve?

Kinas president og partisjef Xi Jinping innledet det nye året med å snakke om viktigheten av fred, fordragelighet og samarbeid mellom alle verdens folk. Så gikk det noen dager, og pipen fikk en annen lyd. På en pressekonferanse i Beijing truet regjeringens talskvinne et stort antall land med uspesifiserte ”straffetiltak” fordi de ønsker å beskytte seg mot den kinesiske virusbølgen. Det vil ikke

China suspends social media accounts of Covid policy critics

China has taken down more than 1,000 social media accounts - some with millions of followers - that criticised the government's Covid policies. Social media platform Weibo said it had suspended or banned accounts for what it described as personal attacks against Chinese Covid specialists. Weibo did not specify which posts had prompted the action.China scrapped its strict zero-Covid policy in

Empty Shelves and Packed Clinics: Rural China in Crisis

“I’m the only doctor in our village clinic. I can’t see fever patients and I don’t have anything for them anyway,” said Dr. Shi from Wangzongdian, a village on the outskirts of the city of Xingyang in Henan province. On Dec. 20, he told Sixth Tone’s sister publication The Paper that his village had completely run out of cold and flu medicine for nearly two weeks.“I asked the wholesale department

China Covid: Young people self-infect as fears for elderly grow

When Mr Chen's 85-year-old father fell ill with Covid in December, it was impossible to get an ambulance or see a doctor. They went to Chaoyang Hospital in Beijing, where they were told to either try other hospitals or sit in the corridor with an IV drip. "There was no bed, no respiratory machine, no medical equipment" available, Mr Chen tells the BBC.His father managed to find a bed at another

Where are Chinese travelers heading now that borders have reopened?

Xiongjie Dai, a freelance software engineer living in the Chinese city of Suzhou, dreams about his first big trip post-Covid-19. The 32-year-old says destinations like South Korea, Europe, Japan, New Zealand and Australia rank high on the list. But he has his eyes set on the US."When I have enough money, I'd like to visit America first," he tells CNN Travel. "America is the leader in both the

Remembering a Golden Age: Shanghai at the Turn of the Century

For photographer Xu Haifeng and many others of his generation, Shanghai in the 1990s was a place teeming with possibilities. As China’s economic reforms put the city at the forefront of globalization, youths of his age embraced fashion, business opportunities, and a stronger sense of freedom to pursue their dreams.As a budding photographer at the time, Xu found himself drawn to the urban ruins —

COVID Is Rife Inside China’s Colleges. Exams Are Going Ahead Anyway.

On Dec. 8, China’s central authorities issued a document that effectively ended the “zero-COVID” policy. Anyone testing positive for the coronavirus would be allowed to stay at home rather than be taken to centralized quarantine. Soon after, cities all over the country rapidly dismantled their pandemic-control systems. Rules requiring residents to take regular PCR tests and scan digital health

Can international tourists visit China? Everything you need to know about the country's reopening

Some potentially good news for travelers hoping to visit China in 2023. After nearly three years of being largely cut off from the world, Chinese authorities announced the lifting of several major Covid-related entry restrictions that take effect on January 8. Among these, China has dropped quarantine requirements for all international arrivals, its most significant move yet as it veers away from