For the first time since the beginning of the Covid epidemic in China, Beijing has announced that starting from July 11, people entering crowded venues such as libraries, museums, cinemas, theatres, stadiums, Internet cafes and other similar places must be vaccinated.
Senior citizens visiting activity sites for the elderly, including recreational and fitness centers, also should be vaccinated as soon as possible, along with seniors who are staying at nursing homes or rest homes.
The vaccine mandate was announced on Wednesday by Li Ang (李昂), deputy director at the Beijing Municipal Health Commission, during a regular press conference regarding the city’s Covid situation and ongoing anti-epidemic work.
During the press conference, Li also reiterated that those working in healthcare, epidemic prevention and control, community or volunteer work and other public services should complete full vaccination. People who are “not suitable” for vaccination will be exempted.
It is the first time for Beijing to make vaccines mandatory for those visiting public places.
“Why did you talk bullsh*t about not enforcing vaccines previously?!” some commenters wrote on social media in response to the news, with others wondering if this meant the mandatory mass testing would no longer be necessary.
Another popular Weibo comment said: “If we get vaccinated, can we no longer be infected? If we get vaccinated, do we no longer need testing? If we get vaccinated, are we we no longer required to quarantine? Will you admit to the side effects of vaccination?”
Although Chinese state media already claimed that Chinese Covid-19 vaccines were proven effective as early as September 2020, they were not officially mandatory before.
The CanSino vaccine was approved to be given to members of the military by late June of 2020, after which it was also administered to those facing high infection risks, such as medical industry workers and border inspectors. Two other vaccines by Sinovac and Sinopharm were also given to thousands of people, including the employees of Sinovac and their families, after being authorized for ’emergency use’ in summer of 2020.
There was some contradiction in how domestic news outlets previously reported about made-in-China vaccines. On one hand, it was emphasized that Chinese vaccines were ‘succesful’ and would be launched soon. On the other hand, leading experts such as Zhong Nanshan (钟南山) seemed apprehensive and were quoted as saying that it would take up to two years to roll out a large-scale vaccine program in China – which would be around now.
By spring of 2021, vaccines were readily available in China and although people initially were encouraged to get vaccinated with local authorities giving away freebies for those getting their shot, people soon rushed to get vaccinated once there were new local outbreaks in, among others, Anhui and Liaoning.
Crazy lines for vaccination in May of 2021.
By mid September of 2021, China had reportedly fully inoculated 1 billion people. But with approximately 48 million people over 60 years old remaining unvaccinated as of May of this year, including nearly half of the people over 80, there has been more urgent advise from experts to boost vaccination rates in order to lower the death rate of Covid-19 outbreaks.
While some areas in China were making vaccines mandatory earlier in 2021, central health authorities put a stop to compulsory vaccines on April 11th of last year (“不得强制要求全员接种新冠疫苗”).
Online poster by People’s Daily says not to force people to take the Covid vaccine.
On social media, many commenters feel that Beijing’s latest announcement is still forcing people to get vaccinated despite earlier official statements saying that people should not be forced to to get the shot.
Some people talk about Beijing ‘playing games’ with Covid guidelines and the language that comes with it. “It’s like Shanghai saying they weren’t actually in lockdown,” one commenter wrote: “Not sure why I stayed at home all that time then.”
At the same time, there are also netizens expressing full support for the latest measures:
“First, Beijing isn’t really the first to implement this policy, many countries around the world have had similar policies before, and there are precedents in common law and mainland law, so there’s no controversy when it comes to legality. Second, it really isn’t forced on you. For those who do not [wish] to receive the vaccine for no particular reason, you could choose not to go to crowded public places, and you might as well not get the vaccine.”
This blogger goes on to list more reasons why they support Beijing’s vaccine mandate, including the proven efficiency and safety of the vaccine, and the choice to get a vaccine in order to get more freedom.
Still, many remain skeptical and might just wait out on getting the shot if they haven’t gotten it already.
“As long as I can still do my groceries, it’s fine by me,” some people commented.
Some people are also worried about the technical side of the vaccine mandate: “If I receive my vaccine outside of Beijing, will it still show up in the Beijing Health app?” one person wondered.
And many typical comments show that there is simply not enough awareness on the pro’s and cons of getting a Covid vaccine: “Can the vaccine prevent the spread of the virus? What are the side effects?”
Many people also see Beijing’s announcement as a sign of what is to come: “The next step is the entire country.”
To read more about Covid-19 in China, check our articles here.
By Manya Koetse
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