Residents from the mainland are now able to travel to Macao using an online visa system rather than in-person applications, the Chinese immigration office has announced.
The move, which is expected to increase travel to the special administrative region, has become effective on November 1 and will facilitate the process for travellers who, due to the COVID-19 restrictions, have had to apply online for over two years now, VisaGuide.World reports.
The authority revealed that the measure would launch exit-entry management policies and measures to promote regional economic and social development. However, easing visa rules follows Macao’s government announcement to reinstate some of its most stringent COVID-19 restrictions after several cases were reported with no infections for more than three months.
Authorities in Macao have locked down MGM Cotai casino resort, with staff and guests being ordered to stay inside until November 1. All of Macao’s 700,000 people are obligated to take rapid antigen tests on a daily basis during this period.
The casino closure follows China’s zero COVID-19 restrictions, with those losing millions of dollars monthly. Macao’s six casino operators, such as Sands China, MGM China, Wynn Macao, Melco Resorts, Galaxy Entertainment and SJM Holdings, are waiting on the government’s decision for their licences’ renewal.
As an article from Aljazeera reveals, Chinese nationals are growing tired of additional check-ups against COVID-19, which are mandatory by the government.
“I have accepted lockdowns, forced COVID-19 tests and health codes, but this thing feels like surveillance just for the sake of surveillance. I am afraid that the COVID-19 strategy is starting to be about controlling Chinese people instead of fighting COVID-19,” a 34-year-old Chinese national that goes by the name of Yu Ting Xu told Al Jazeera.
A few months ago, she received a box with an electronic monitoring wristband, with the demand to wear it at all times to prevent being infected by COVID-19 in her area.
Thousands of residents in central China were planning to hold a protest outside a bank in Zhengzhou as many of them had been unable to access their bank since April due to system upgrades.
The movement is quite limited for Chinese nationals, whose wristbands turn from green to red once they visit an infected area; thus, they must quarantine immediately. The same applies if one has been in close contact with an infected person.
This system has been criticised by human rights organisations, saying the tool risked violating the human rights of Chinese citizens. A Weibo user went on to say that the government’s stringent strategy is killing the population, not the virus.
The post China: Residents Can Now Travel to Macao With E-Visas appeared first on VisaGuide.World.
