Category: INSIDE CHINA

The Lunar New Year Gathering More Like Attending a Funeral: Beijing Resident

Despite the Lunar New Year in full play for 15 days, from Jan. 22 to Feb. 5, people in China are not in a celebratory mood. Beijing residents suffered a surge in COVID cases after the regime suddenly lifted the lockdown and eased up on the COVID restrictions. Instead of celebrating the Lunar New Year,…


China Lost 15 Academicians in 26 Days, Including Military Weapons Experts

The latest COVID-19 outbreak in China has infected millions of people all over the country. From Jan. 1 to Jan. 26, 15 academicians passed away, including several top military weapon experts, such as renowned nuclear weapons expert Wu Sheng, air defense missile expert Liang Jincai, nuclear submarine chief designer Zhang Jinlin, and mine blasting expert…


China U-Turns on Visa Freeze for Japanese

TOKYO—China announced it was resuming issuing visas for Japanese travelers beginning Sunday, ending its nearly three-week suspension in an apparent protest of Tokyo’s tougher COVID-19 entry requirements for tourists from China. The decision was announced in a statement posted on the Chinese Embassy’s website. According to Asia Nikkei, the decision was to prioritize business in…


Overloaded Crematoriums in Shanghai Points to Surging Death Toll

As tens of millions of Chinese carrying luggage and gifts traveled for long-awaited family reunions, grieving relatives struggled to get their loved ones to their final resting place ahead of the Lunar New Year. Interviews with staff at five funeral homes in Shanghai on Jan. 18 showed the waiting times to get a cremation slot…


White House Criticizes China for Not Being ‘Fully Transparent’ About COVID Numbers

During a White House press briefing on Jan. 25, National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby said that China hasn’t been “fully transparent” about COVID numbers. “And we cannot speak to the veracity of those numbers. We urge China to be fully transparent about what’s going on.” Under increasing international pressure to share…


Shanghai Conservatory of Music Releases 8 Consecutive Obituaries

At least eight professors and staff members of the Shanghai Conservatory of Music died due to a COVID spike that started in December last year and continued into January 2023. The deaths included three Chinese Communist Party (CCP) branch secretaries. On Jan. 24, Sha Hankun, a former deputy secretary of the party branch and deputy…


China’s Funeral Parlors, Suppliers Crushed by Demand Amid COVID Death Surge

Never has the winter felt so suffocating for Zou, who counted about 20 deaths among his social circles amid the massive COVID wave that’s gripping China. Memorial tents, indicating households that have lost family members, are visible on every street in his hometown, in the historic city of Yueyang in southern China’s mountainous Hunan Province…


High-Profile Deaths in China Spike in December 2022

The COVID pandemic once again swept across China in late 2022. Since the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has been covering up the true extent of the outbreak, there is no way to know the true number of deaths in China. However, based on statistics made public by some academic institutions and obituaries of some Chinese…


Residents in Rural China Describe Huge Surge in Deaths Amid COVID Crisis

Residents in rural China have described a surge in deaths in their townships and local crematoriums operating around the clock amid a severe COVID wave sweeping the country. As Chinese officials acknowledge that 80 percent of the population has been infected with COVID-19, concerns have risen about the outbreak situation in the countryside, given the…


Wave of Celebrity Deaths in China’s COVID Surge Casts Doubts Over Actual Toll

The growing number of deaths of celebrities and public figures in China has cast further doubt on the official death toll as the country battles an extreme outbreak that shows little sign of easing. Since late November, more than 330 Chinese celebrities, officials, and scholars have died, according to a tally by The Epoch Times….