Hong Kong asks Japan to reverse 'hasty' COVID flight restrictions

Japan became one of the first countries to impose China-specific travel restrictions this week as infections surged across the mainland.

China's flip-flop in covid policy has brought an explosive surge of infections and deaths, drug shortages, and confusion and frustration among the population, with no data coming from the country.

At the moment, there is likely to be over one million cases a day in China and over 5,000 deaths a day.

And.,.

Estimated case rates are to be 3.7 million a day in a January peak and 4.2 million a day in March 2023. 

This is in stark contrast to the official data which is reporting 1,800 cases and only 7 official deaths over the past week.

Keep the border's restricted to China travel until a clearer picture of what is actually going on there can be obtained

Japanese authorities with major media are emphasizing about pandemic in China everyday, but They behave about domestic Covid19 8th wave that recorded worst deaths surge as if nothing happen.

Not hasty. Smart.

Not sorry, China.

The Japanese govt is doing the right thing in restricting flights from China and insisting on Covid testing. It's called looking after your citizens - a concept China knows nothing about.

Yesterday in Japan: 216,000 + cases, 400+ deaths.

China is 11 times bigger than Japan in terms of population. Multiply Japan’s numbers by 11 and you get 2,376,000+ cases and 4,565 deaths.

Fear and xenophobia beat math again.

The current (pre-Friday) entry procedures for Japan do not recognize Chinese vaccines. In order for any person from China to enter Japan a PCR test would be required anyway. The new restrictions make no difference other than once again give a false sense of security and a perception of toughness and competence by the Kishida Administration.

Yes, the USA will also apply restrictions to Chinese entries, but they currently have absolutely no safeguard at all, unlike Japan.

Unfortunately “Hong Kong” is now the CCP controlled dictatorship.

So when dealing with them, things are different.

Vaccines don't prevent transmissions, and useless to get them "for others".

It's surprising Hong Kong citizens would want to come here where the Covid crisis is beyond control.

Covid is almost certainly 10x worse per-capita in Japan compared to China.

At the moment, there is likely to be over one million cases a day in China and over 5,000 deaths a day. 

And.,.

Estimated case rates are to be 3.7 million a day in a January peak and 4.2 million a day in March 2023. 

This is in stark contrast to the official data which is reporting 1,800 cases and only 7 official deaths over the past week.

Keep the border's restricted to China travel until a clearer picture of what is actually going on there can be obtained

Thats alarming!

How's Japan doing right now?

Covid is almost certainly 10x worse per-capita in Japan compared to China.

Do you have empirical figures to back that up? Or just a "hunch"?

I'll wait.

Hong Kong uses western vaccines yet they're still in the same boat as the mainland.

No amount of boosters, regardless of type, will prevent infection and transmission.

Just yesterday, over 1.5 years since the vaccines stated being used en-masse in Japan, there were a record number of Covid deaths. The vaccines Japan is using are absolutely useless unless you count the people they have killed being protected from Covid. If you give it serious consideration, that is maybe why they keep saying the vaccines are highly effective. If the vaccines kill the person, that person has 100% protection against Covid.

Do you have empirical figures to back that up? Or just a "hunch"?

"Almost certainly" 10x worse according to the official data. And I know for a fact, it's extremely hard to get tested in Japan while in China they have mass testing facilities in place. So as for people infected as opposed to infected and serious ill, Japan is almost certainly "at least" 10x worse.

Another backwards decision by 時代遅れ Japan. COVID is endemic in every country, including Japan.

Are All these travel decisions being made by the science?? Twitter censored the medical opinion of a Harvard Medical School doctor and countless others for touting natural immunity instead of vaccines, and violating their “Covid 19 misinformation policy” in the process… Covid twitter coverup files out now. You know the other tech companies were involved too. Mainstream media is looking the other way.

And I know for a fact, it's extremely hard to get tested in Japan while in China they have mass testing facilities in place.

There are free PCR tests at the end of my road ( in Tokyo).

Mass testing in China has stopped.

Let's brace ourselves for yet another wave of COVID xenophobia, with some red scare for good measure.

As someone else pointed out, Japan has, per capita, as many, if not more infections per day as China is estimated to have even by the most pessimistic observers. Is China transparent? No. But does anyone remember how Japan dealt with its infections until the Olympics? Were there any "Japan-specific" measures anywhere?

Having said that, I don't see anything wrong with testing upon arrival, apart from it taking up extra time.

Don't know why Japan, Germany, India and USA are acting as if they don't have any infections. Most people in those countries have probably had it or have it right now. Japan itself has had about 1-200,000 daily infections for a long time. This Sinophobia is back to what it was like in early 2020. My advice, spend your tourist money either in friendly countries or continue to boost the domestic tourism industry. So most gaijins on JT didn't mind the ban on foreign residents coming back to Japan during most of 2020?

There are free PCR tests at the end of my road

I know free testing exists but one has to make an appointment. And when one can actually get through to the number after repeatedly trying, one is on hold for at least 10min. Then one can get the numbers for clinics in the area which are doing testing. Then one has to call the clinics to make an appointment. But one had better do it as soon as they are open because testing is booked out very quickly and one can't make an appointment a day in advance.

And the less reliable testing kits one can buy from a drug store are sold out everywhere. At least they were 2 months ago.

Is China transparent?

Japan isn't transparent either. The EU and USA are somewhat more "transparent" in the fact they simply don't report any official data.

Vaccines don't prevent transmissions

They help prevent inundating ICUs and as a fully vaccinated person myself, I want that facility available in case I need it for serious non COVID hospitalization.

Bronco.... again you are incorrect. Only recently has HK started using the mRNA vaccines. From an article dated December 23, 2022, "Early afternoon, German pharma company BioNTech announced that the version of its mRNA vaccine produced by Fosun Pharma ....has been approved in Hong Kong for use "(https://www.forbes.com/sites/brendanahern/2022/12/23/biontech-mrna-vaccine-approved-in-hong-kong-week-in-review/?sh=d91f7162ea0b).

Until recently, HK was only using the Sinopharm vaccine.

Please try to provide correct information to people, even if it runs counter to your agenda.

Bronco

Hong Kong uses western vaccines yet they're still in the same boat as the mainland.

No amount of boosters, regardless of type, will prevent infection and transmission.

It seems the US has implemented this same restriction?

@sven

Do you even live in Japan? I was in Ueno yesterday. There’s a walk-in PCR testing place right on Ameyoko. And if you walk into any clinic, they’re going to test you regardless if you want to see a doctor for anything.

People can argue about the efficacy of vaccines all they want. But don’t argue that they’re adding to the death toll. They’re not.

And, I’m being cynical, most of the people dying already had compromised immune systems and would have been in the hospital eventually anyway regardless of Covid. Covid just sped things up.

@iraira I’m sorry but you are also incorrect. Although the Chinese vaccines were given first approval, the Pfizer vaccine soon followed in early 2021 and proved much more popular than Sinovac. The majority of people in HK chose Pfizer in the end - including me!

iriaira:

Until recently, HK was only using the Sinopharm vaccine.

Wrong. They had a choice. Sinopharm or Pfizer, as Stephen says.

And in HK, like the rest of China, no one was forced to take it.

It's really time just to stop all flights from the PRC to anywhere. On two flights into Italy yesterday, 38% of passengers tested positive on arrival in one flight.And on another 62%

Once again thr PRC are going to cause a worldwide problem.

Do you even live in Japan? I was in Ueno yesterday. There’s a walk-in PCR testing place right on Ameyoko. And if you walk into any clinic, they’re going to test you regardless if you want to see a doctor for anything.

I don't know about Ueno but I have my doubts because the second part is 100% false. If you just walk into a hospital without an appointment and ask for a PCR test, you will almost certainly be turned away. As far as I know, many don't offer PCR testing so you can't even make an appointment. One hospital I went to had a "security girl" standing at the front door and not letting anyone wanting a PCR test in.

Sorry Chinese tourists, as it's not your fault, but the world must protect itself on all fronts from the dangerous, hypocritical and unaccountable borg of a leadership class that has proven totally incapable of doing anything else than making a bad situation worse. I think at this juncture a complete ban may be the way to go. There has been little goodwill shown from your end anyway and we have seen how you treat your own citizens during times of chaos and confusion. It wasn't pretty.

The world simply can't let the CCP use its citizens again to reseed the world with the next variant. Everyone has the right to protect their loved ones from your mess. The jury is still out on how this whole thing started too. We have done what we had to do from our end for the past three years, and luckily didn't have to maintain some ridiculous narrative that we were the "heros of the pandemic' and just got on with it. Now we are turning the corner on this thing and it's completely unrealistic to expect us to take another hit. Sorry, cant happen.

Clean your room, sort yourselves out, vax your people properly and the doors will open again. Don't whine or play the victim card either. That boat has sailed. You all have a stake in the glorious waking dragon Chinese dream, so own it. Complete ban until realistic figures are released and shared with the world.

Kettle calling pot black.

No need to worry folks because China has rejected criticism of its statistics as groundless and politically motivated attempts to smear its policies. It also played down the risk of new variants, saying it expects future mutations to be potentially more virulent but less severe.

Phew, that's a relief

Also, everything is ok because In Italy, Milan’s main airport, Malpensa, has already started testing passengers arriving from Beijing and Shanghai on 26 December and the results showed almost one in two visitors was infected.

Well done China!!!

Elvis is hereToday  01:49 pm JST

No need to worry folks because China has rejected criticism of its statistics as groundless and politically motivated attempts to smear its policies. It also played down the risk of new variants, saying it expects future mutations to be potentially more virulent but less severe.

Hearing this news makes me think the US is making a mistake by not testing all incoming visitors from Asia, especially from Japan.

Sorry HK you're part of China..

Same as Taiwan..

Most of the Chinese travelers looking to get out of China will be heading to Asian destinations because it is cheaper. The wealthier Chinese travelers will be heading to western countries.

Milan Reports 50% of Passengers on China Flights Have Covid

https://news.yahoo.com/milan-reports-50-passengers-china-154902106.html?fr=sycsrp_catchall

Coming to a Japanese airport near you!

Expect another global outbreak during the Chinese New Year!

Also, expect Japan to drop the ball on this like other major issues social issues!

Sorry HK you're part of China..

Sadly for them, that is true for now.

Same as Taiwan..

Incorrect as Taiwan is free, does not answer to Jinping or his minions, has its own currency, laws, military, democracy and taxes. Chinese laws do not apply on Taiwan and the Taiwanese will fight to keep it that way, and they have friends that will assist them.

Same as Taiwan..

Nope! Try again!

Smart move by Japan, if only Australian government acted faster. This is like groundhog day again, how much longer do we need this pandemic to continue for.

Japanese government has just revised its decision on restricting flights from HK to only 4 airports. They’ve now added 3 more - an unusual move but probably because of all the pre-booked business that would have been lost in Okinawa and Sapporo. Who says the Japanese government isn’t pragmatic when it wants to be?

Don't let Hongkong & China ppl enter Japan just yet. Hongkong belongs to China and china is famous for all the twist & turn untrusthworthy fake data. Must test the ppl from China thoroughly once they landed at the japanese airport or else a simple lapse will cause covid explosion in Japan. Stay safe Japan and don't let China detect.

@tmtfly Do try and keep up with the news. Hong Kong residents have not been stopped from entering Japan. They can can enter (now 7 airports) with NO pcr test as long as they haven’t been to Mainland China in the past 7 days and have 3 jabs. Your ignorance is on display.

@sven

They do have walk in PCR centers but I guess you have to look for them. I’m a smoker (which probably carries a higher risk of killing me than Covid) and every winter like clockwork I come down with bronchitis. I walked into my local clinic and told them I wanted antibiotics. I didn’t even want a PCR test. Still had to take it anyway and wait for the negative result before the doctor would listen to my chest. So I mean if you’re sick with anything they’re still going to make you take the test. They might turn you away if you don’t feel sick and just need a negative result for travel or other reasons. But if you’re sick with anything and have a fever they’re not going to turn you away.

Mr. pot meet kettle. China's lack of transparency and failed attempts at zero covid have only resulted in an explosion of outbreaks. After HK implemented a similar policy, it now has the audacity to cry foul.

Stephan…..good to know. Thanks, I was under the impression that only the Chinese vaccines were available in HK from the get go.

Hong Kong asks Japan to reverse 'hasty' COVID flight restrictions

We need to get rid of any and all Covid restrictions.

Sven

And I know for a fact, it's extremely hard to get tested in Japan while in China they have mass testing facilities in place.

I have no idea where you are in Japan but I “know for a fact”, to use your words, that it is very easy to get tested. At least in my experience it has been and, because of work travel, I’ve had to get tested several times.

Better to do one step up for China (ban all passengers from), and one step up for Hong Kong and Macau (mandatory tests upon arrival). Period.

Sven, you can buy PCR tests online from amazon JP etc.

China wants the world to get infected, and then they will blame it on the flu, they are even trying to official do away with the name covid 19.

Just watch.

Nope, get your S together China.

Hong Kong oops China asks Japan to reverse 'hasty' COVID flight restrictions. If Japan does reverse this it means yen over Japanese citizens health

Regardless whether Scientifically effective or not, the measures that Governments around the World are taking, are probably as a result of complaints over their inaction during the initial spread of the Virus. Now, by reacting "quickly", they can be seen to be doing "something"...

@xin xin - There are many ways to come to Japan, not only direct flights, but consider for example, China to Japan via Thailand/Singapore, or any other indirect routes.... can't ban them all, and banning Chinese Passport holders would impact those who've been living here for many years, and who'd perhaps gone to visit relatives in Australia (for example).

Other nations should impost the same restrictions on Japan, since the rates here are skyrocketing again, too. I know, I know, "B-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-but that's different!"... except the thing is, it's not.

So for Chinese flying from Beijing to Hong kong won't be much of a problem, and from there to the rest of the unsuspecting World, including Tokyo... Next Wave here we come!