[EpochTimesOctober292021](Interviews and reports by Epoch Times reporters Gu Xiaohua and Gu Qing’er) “The entire state of paralysis, we can’t live anymore.” “I’m disappointed in the government, it’s too corrupt.” “To be honest, I I really hope that everyone will turn back. The government will turn a deaf ear to it, and sooner or later, something will happen.” Several people detained in Ruili revealed their dissatisfaction and helplessness to Epoch Times reporters. They saw no hope and wanted to escape from the city.
Ruili is a border port city. Residents of China and Myanmar live across the border between Ruili and Myanmar, with frequent daily and business exchanges. From the end of March, the Ruili epidemic has continued to this day. Ruili has been closed for a long time, local people cannot go to work, cannot do business, students cannot go to school, and prices are soaring. In small cities, only the isolation hotel and the express delivery industry are booming.
Former deputy mayor appeals to save Ruili, official denies long-term lockdown
People in Ruili kept shouting on the Internet: “Life is very difficult.” However, Lu Media reported that Ruili officials said that “some residents have real difficulties in their lives.”
The person in charge of the Propaganda Department of the Ruili Municipal Party Committee denied to the “Chinese Philanthropist” that the local area was “closed” for a long time. He said, “It is not a completely closed state, but a strict management period.”
On October 28, Dai Rongli, former deputy mayor of Ruili, issued a message calling for the rescue of Ruili. The article said that rounds of epidemic expenditures have overwhelmed the city. The long-term closure of the city has formed a deadlock in the development of the city, and it is very urgent to restore production and necessary operations. Dai Rongli started to work in Ruili in January 2018 and returned to Beijing in early 2019.
In response to this, Shang Labian, deputy secretary of the Ruili Municipal Party Committee and Mayor of the Communist Party of China, responded to The Paper, saying that Dai Rongli’s article is all old information, and “Ruili does not need foreign assistance for the time being.” Mao Xiao, secretary of the municipal party committee, said that approval is required for receiving aid. Dai Rongli also revealed that on the 28th, he had received “telephone concerns” from Shang Labian and Mao Xiao.
Dai Rongli said that although he left his post, he often received information from local people and he would be responsible for the content of the article. Now Ruili is really difficult, and I hope the whole country will pay attention.
The mainland WeChat public account “Politics is Talking” on the 29th article questioned that a small town with a total population of 500,000, after 7 months of closure, said it did not need assistance. Are the officials living too well, or are the citizens screaming at nothing? The folks say that 500,000 people only 100,000 left. The official said, no, there are about 200,000.
The article said that whether it was 200,000 or 100,000 left, it was almost a devastating blow to such a small city. Why don’t the remaining people leave? Either there are no conditions, or you can’t leave. The folk and official opinions are quite different. Who should you believe?
What is the real folk voice?
What is the real folk voice? In an interview with Epoch Times reporters on October 28, many Ruili citizens said that the whole city is now a lifeless city.
He Xiuli (a pseudonym) is a native of Ruili, who previously worked in the education and training industry in Ruili. Due to the CCP’s crackdown on the education and training industry and the epidemic, all local education and training schools are closed and they are unable to open.
For her, this year, she has lived in isolation, short-term unblocking, and isolation. The short-term release is about one week, and the isolation period is from half a month to one month, or even two months, which has continued to the present.
He Xiuli said that most of Ruili’s cities are border villages. From March to now, they have been in a state of home isolation. The Ruili City Government has issued home quarantine documents four or five times, and each community has been basically quarantined. If a community is positive, the whole area will be in a state of isolation and will not be allowed to go out.
How difficult is life for the people? “Now in Ruili, the entire industry, all the stores with a small crowd of people, those merchants are on the verge of bankruptcy. We are also in an unemployed situation, because the boss can not pay the wages of so many employees. It is estimated that the epidemic is over here, and it may also face closure. The situation at the school,” she said.
He Xiuli said that the whole situation was paralyzed, but the government turned a deaf ear to it. It also said in the news that it was not as exaggerated as the masses said, and that everything was guaranteed, but everyone was not guaranteed.
“I have a mortgage of more than 2,000 yuan every month, and other people have mortgages and car loans, which add up to 5,000 or 6,000 per month. Everyone has zero income in half a year.” She said.
“There are even more miserable places, such as movie theaters, gyms, etc., which cannot be opened this year. Those bosses simply can’t keep going. Think about the rent, spending hundreds of thousands of dollars a month, without paying a penny. Many people do. It’s a collapsed situation.” He Xiuli said, “Someone committed suicide two days ago. The official report said that the work was not going well and it was funny. All the troubles were caused by the inability to resume work.”
Cheng Hao, the owner of a barber shop in Ruili, is from Baoshan, Yunnan. He has lived in Ruili for decades. He said: “We rent a house, with a rent of more than 30,000 a year. If you go to another place to rebuild your life, this foundation is not something you can do in one or two days. Where are you going to leave? There is nowhere to go.”
Cheng Hao said that those who can do business with the government now, such as those who do nucleic acid and government engineering projects, are subcontracting layer by layer, and they are making the most money. Those who cannot do business with the government will not survive.
Lin Quan (pseudonym), a jewellery business owner from Sichuan to Ruili, said, “Because of home isolation, how many days and nights a person has experienced in the house is a torment. Many people say that I am not as free as a prison cell. Cell, I know when I can leave, right? Don’t worry about financial life, right?”
Now stay at home. “You are worried about everything. You have to worry about the elderly, children, and food at home, as well as car loans and mortgages. You have to think about everything. You can’t make a cent when you stay in a house. Are your thoughts suffering?” Lin Quan said.
Lin Quan said, “I am a man, and I have to bear the responsibility of supporting my family. I have been delayed for more than half a year. Your government has restricted my freedom like this. I am disappointed with the government. It is too corrupt. I don’t have any hope for the government.”
He Xiuli said, “I don’t know why the government wants to do this. This is an ethnic minority area. If this continues, I think something will happen sooner or later. (Now) there is a little sign of it. I was in Wanding Town two days ago. In the government building, some people were pulling banners there, and they heard that something was burning and gasoline was spilled.”
“To be honest now, I really hope that everyone will turn back, everything is dark. The people want to reflect this, whether there is corruption or not.” She said.
Lin Quan said, “The government’s briefing on October 26 was still fooling around. The clarifications made by the government on paper and the government’s clarifications were just the government’s consistent means. It is still covering up the facts. What can’t be covered up will be exposed sooner or later. There is nothing impenetrable. The wall will let people across the country know what the (government) is doing sooner or later.”
Editor in charge: Lin Congwen
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