With all the fear of the coronavirus across the world, travel to and from mainland China has become more difficult. As Iris Yao, a 22 year old student going to university in Sydney, knows too well after being stuck on Jeju Island off the coast of South Korea for almost two weeks. After going home for a brief time to her hometown of Zhoushan, China, she has been practically marooned on Jeju Island on the way back to school in Sydney, Australia.
While wealthy Chinese tourists were once welcomed to the island, Ms. Yao is now viewed with suspicion by the local population and other tourists. There are restaurants that have banned Chinese citizens, and employees have asked Ms. Yao to not speak Mandarin in fear of scaring away customers.
According to current regulations, Ms. Yao will not be able to depart to Australia until she has been out of mainland China for at least 14 days. Jeju Island has also suspended its visa waiver program for Chinese citizens, and there have been 28 cases of coronavirus in South Korea. Ms. Yao is depressed and frustrated, saying "I just want to stay in a safe place."
Discrimination like this has been happening all over the world. In Japan, the hashtag #ChineseDon'tCometoJapan was recently trending on Twitter. Meanwhile, people in Singapore have signed a petition that called for the government to ban Chinese nationals from entering the country.
While Ms. Yao is more confident she can fly to Australia after the two weeks are up, she is still worried about a scheduled stopover in Malaysia. Her hometown, Zhoushan, is in the Chinese costal province of Zhejiang. Zhejiang Province is one of the hardest hit by the coronavirus with more than 1,100 confirmed cases, and Malaysia has banned visitors from there. Ms. Yao could potentially be turned around and have even more trouble getting to Sydney.
Ms. Yao said on this matter, "This is really troubling for me...But it is my only chance."
For a Chinese Traveler, Even Paradise Comes With Prejudice
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