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