[EpochTimesAugust192022](The Epoch Times reporter Zhang Ting comprehensive report) Ms. Wang (Fiona Wang) originally planned to spend a week at the Atlantis Hotel in Sanya in Hainan, China, to relax. But she never expected to be stuck in a hotel for the past two weeks. When the 13-month-old baby formula ran out, she begged the local government to arrange a flight to leave Hainan.
Experts say the Hainan incident is sending a signal that you are not safe anywhere in China.
Ms. Wang, from Beijing, is a mother of three young children. She is just one of 150,000 holidaymakers stuck in Hainan this month. Under the CCP’s extreme zero-clearing policy, the recent outbreak in Hainan has triggered a series of blockades and large-scale nucleic acid testing.
“We are a big family here.” The Financial Times quoted Ms Wang as saying, “We are very anxious and worried that we cannot go home.”
“We can’t just complain, we need to tell the government what we want,” she said.
After two weeks of suffering, Ms Wang and her children finally boarded a flight back to Beijing on Friday.
Jenna Lively, an American resident in Beijing, was one of many who unsuccessfully tried to flee before the lockdown in Hainan.
Two days after arriving in Hainan, she was told that her hotel had become a quarantine hotel.
“When we started to realise that things were getting worse, we adjusted our flight. … However, right on our way to the airport, the road was blocked. We were stuck on the highway, couldn’t get back to the hotel, and also Couldn’t get to the airport.” Her regiment was later taken to another hotel by the police and had been unable to leave.
Expert: You are not safe anywhere in China
Analysts say the lockdown in Hainan has highlighted the risks of travel in China, undermined confidence in the world‘s largest consumer market and heightened doubts that China’s economy could rebound sooner.
The Financial Times quoted Alicia García-Herrero, chief Asia-Pacific economist at Natixis, as saying: “Hainan is sending a signal that you are not anywhere in[China]. Safety.”
“It happens when you go to Ikea in Shanghai, to Hainan, to the office,” Garcia-Herrero said. He was referring to the chaotic scene of the recent closure of IKEA in Shanghai, which caused customers to panic and flee.
Kyle Newton, from the UK, had hoped to take a break at the Sanya resort on Hainan Island after enduring two months of strict lockdown measures in Shanghai, but arrived amid the outbreak.
He told the BBC that he had to wait in line for about two hours each morning for a nucleic acid test, which meant he was forced to cancel work meetings.
The situation, he said, was “obviously disappointing”, especially for Shanghainese who have endured lengthy restrictions.
“Everyone else from Shanghai is in a bad mood,” he said.
The BBC quoted Brian Hall, a professor at New York University in Shanghai, as saying the lockdown had “significant consequences” for people’s mental health. Hall is a global mental health researcher.
“I am concerned that these lockdowns may affect people’s livelihoods, which will have a knock-on effect on their mental health, especially those in precarious working conditions, migrants and young people,” he said.
Hall said this is the fourth time he has experienced lockdown measures this year.
The report also said that Frenchman Simon Vericel moved his family from Beijing to Sanya in May to avoid the capital’s relatively strict epidemic prevention measures.
But in Sanya, Verisser also did not escape the CCP’s strict epidemic prevention measures.
Zero policy hits consumer confidence, weakens China’s economy
The Financial Times said any further crackdown on mobility and discretionary spending would trigger economic woes that are a headache for Beijing’s economic planners.
In the coming months, any signs of social instability will be particularly worrying for Beijing, as the Communist Party prepares to hold a 20th National Congress where Xi is preparing to seek a third term.
Xi Jinping’s government has relied on the service sector to help it achieve its domestic economic growth goals. Massive lockdowns in Shanghai and other big cities this year have pushed the economy to the brink of recession.
Official statistics for July showed retail sales, a key measure of consumption, rose just 2.7% year-on-year, below expectations for a 5% increase.
The Financial Times quoted Raymond Yeung, chief economist for Greater China at ANZ, as saying that the Hainan incident will further weaken consumer confidence.
“Now, even if you ask people to go, people don’t have the appetite to go anywhere. … It’s becoming a demand-side issue,” Yeung said.
Hainan’s lockdown also exposed the public’s growing frustration and hopelessness with the government, which shows no sign of ending the zero-zero policy.
Reuters reported that the sudden lockdown in Hainan has angered some tourists, who may never go there for vacation in the future. Yang Jing, a Chinese businessman, and her husband and children had to live in a four-star hotel out of their own pockets after the lockdown. The family eats cupped instant noodles every day to avoid spending more on food.
“It was the worst vacation of my life,” Yang Jing said.
“All in all, we’ll never come again!” said Ms. Zhou, from Jiangsu, where she and six other family members had been vacationing.
Ms Zhou said she has been trying to find a way to complain and defend her rights, but no official agency has contacted them or expressed any interest in them.
Responsible editor: Lin Yan#