Recently Yahoo News on-line reported the following:
Fleeing China's Covid lockdowns for the US - through a
Central American jungle (2/2)
BBC - Mengyu Dong - Palo Alto, California
Fri, December 23, 2022 at 12:19 a.m. GMT+8
(continue)
On the road
As they set out on their trip around the world, Mr Sun, like
the compatriots he had found on social media, began by documenting the journey
with a photo of his family's passports and boarding passes on Twitter.
Over the course of weeks on the road, he posted updates. His children bound down a marble staircase at Macau's international airport. The family then made a brief stop in Taipei before flying to Thailand and from there to Turkey, where Mr. Sun captured a seaport draped in the rosy glow of sunset.
The clips take a more serious turn as the family head into the Darién Gap on a boat ride with other migrants from all over the world before sitting in a wagon drawn by a mule. From there, they headed into the roadless rainforest.
At one point a fellow migrant is seen holding the hand of Mr. Sun's six-year-old son as their group treks through muddy trails in the forest. In another, Mr. Sun comforts his children after they are detained by Mexican authorities.
But the most treacherous parts were often not captured by the camera. While wading through a deep river in the jungle, Mr. Sun's wife was swept off her feet by the rapid currents.
She would almost certainly have lost her life if not for three South American migrants who rushed to her rescue, Mr. Sun said.
Because of the language barrier, the Chinese and the South
Americans didn't talk much, he said. "But we were all in this
together."
His family eventually made it to California, where Mr Sun found a job working in a warehouse through networks of Chinese diaspora. The whole trip from China to the US took three months, he said.
'In China, I don't see hope'
As with Mr. Sun, China's zero-Covid policy and tightening political control meant he saw no future there for himself. For fear of retribution for his family back home, he only gave his first name for this story.
Wentao said he made up his mind to leave when China abolished the presidential term limit, clearing the way for Xi Jinping to rule the country indefinitely. In October, Mr Xi secured a third term.
Under Mr. Xi, Beijing has tightened control over the economy, rolling out strict regulations over the private sector. He has also instituted a hard-line Covid policy that meant some could not leave their neighborhood or sometimes even their apartment building.
In November, protests broke out in many Chinese cities, with some calling for Mr Xi's removal from office. Beijing responded by relaxing some of the most unpopular measures.
But many like Wentao are worried that if the authoritarian trend continues, the economic growth that has driven the country forward would no longer hold.
In 2021, the US rejected 79% of tourist visa applications from China.
So instead, Wentao flew from Shanghai to Europe, before catching another flight to Quito, Ecuador.
He then travelled 1,000 miles by bus and boat to reach Acandi, a Colombian town bordering Panama. From there, he trekked for seven days through the Darien jungle with three other Chinese men whom he met on the road, until they reached a jungle refugee camp with hundreds of migrants from around the world.
Wentao eventually made it to California and the whole trip cost some $8,000 (£6,575) - most of his savings. Online estimates put the average cost at anywhere between $5,000-$10,000 to pay for transport, smugglers, food and bribes to gangsters and corrupt police. Chinese migrants have claimed that they are extorted for higher fees than others because they are seen as easier targets.
A long way to a new life
Of the dozen migrants who spoke to the BBC for this story,
many said that, ironically, getting out of China during the pandemic was no
less difficult than the arduous trek around the world itself.
China has implemented strict border control to combat Covid, slashing international passenger flights by 97% in 2021 compared to 2019 according to government figures. Beijing has also stopped issuing passports for "non-essential reasons" under what it calls feibiyao buchuguo - a policy that prohibits people from leaving China unless "strictly necessary".
Some migrants use dubious agencies to forge job offers or school admission letters from overseas to apply for passports, which are necessary to fly out of the country.
Although China has taken steps to loosen Covid restrictions in recent weeks, Wentao said it would not have changed his decision to leave.
The Chinese government did not reply to the BBC's request for comment, but has previously defended the country's policies when questioned over the popularity of zouxian.
Wentao's concerns were also shared by the other migrants the BBC spoke to.
Most of them would file for asylum upon arriving on US soil, often on political or religious grounds. The application process can take many years to complete due to mounting backlogs in the immigration system.
In the meantime, they wait, finding what jobs they can to make a living.
Most settled in California or New York, joining a large Chinese-speaking community for better access to jobs and legal representation.
Wentao chose Fremont, California, to be closer to his church. For $1,900, he bought a 2003 Camry that has over 170,000 miles on it and is living in a home with other migrants. From Monday to Saturday, he gets up around seven, and drives down to San Jose to work with a Chinese construction team, earning $160 a day. On Sunday mornings, he goes to church.
A fan of the hit Western TV series Yellowstone, Wentao dreams of visiting the national park one day.
"But before that, I'm going to save up and buy a new car that is capable of taking me there," he said.
Translation
（繼續）
在路上
當他們踏上環遊世界的旅程時，Sun先生和他在社交媒體上找到的同胞一樣，首先在推特上登出家人的護照和登機証照片去記錄這次旅程。
他用中文寫道: “我們一家終於做出來了” ， “祝我好運。”
在路上的幾週時間裡，他發布了更新。 他的孩子們在澳門國際機場的大理石樓梯上蹦蹦跳跳。 隨後，全家人在台北短暫停留，然後飛往泰國，然後從那裡飛往土耳其，Sun先生在那裡拍下了一個海港，夕陽籠罩在玫瑰色的餘暉中。
他們最終降落在厄瓜多爾的 Quito, 在美洲大陸上唯一不需要中國遊客有簽證的國家之一 - 在開始旅程中最危險的部分之前，他們在那裡參觀了景點。
當一家人與來自世界各地的其他移民乘船前往Darién峽谷，坐在由騾子拉的馬車上之前時，短片的情節變得更加嚴肅。 從那裡，他們進入了沒有道路的熱帶雨林。
有一次，看到一位農民工牽著Sun先生 6 歲兒子的手，他們一行人在森林裡的泥濘小路上跋涉。 在另一張照片中，Sun先生安慰被墨西哥當局拘留的孩子們。
但最危險的部分往往沒有被相機捕捉到。 在叢林中趟過一條深河時，Sun先生的妻子被急流捲走。
Sun 先生說，如果不是三名南美移民趕來救她，她幾乎肯定會喪命。
他說，由於語言不通，中國人和南美人並沒有多說話。 “但我們都在一起。”
他的家人最終到達加利福尼亞州，Sun先生通過華人僑民網絡找到了一份在倉庫工作的工作。 他說，從中國到美國的整個旅程用了三個月。
“在中國，我看不到希望”
30 歲的Wentao用了三個星期的時間來收拾他在中國東部的生活，他在那裡做過一些零工，比如教武術和修理電腦。
與Sun先生一樣，中國的零新冠政策和收緊的政治控制意味著他看不到自己的未來。 為了怕家里人遭到報復，他只說了自己的名字。
Wentao說，當中國取消國家主席任期限制，為習近平無限期統治國家掃清道路時，他就下定決心要離開。
10 月，習近平獲得第三個任期。
在習近平的領導下，北京加強了對經濟的控制，對私營部門實施了嚴格的監管。 他還制定了一項強硬的 Covid 政策，這意味著有些人不能離開他們的社區，有時甚至不能離開他們的樓宇。
11 月，中國許多城市爆發了抗議活動，一些人要求習近平下台。 作為回應，北京放寬了一些最不受歡迎的措施。
但像Wentao這樣的許多人擔心，如果威權主義趨勢繼續下去，推動國家前進的經濟增長將不再保持。
他想在美國開始新的生活，能夠合法地這樣做將是一個遙遙無期的事情, 理由是於病毒大流行病和不斷惡化的政治關係導致美國向中國公民發放的簽證數量急劇下降。
2021 年，美國拒絕了 79% 來自中國的旅遊簽證申請。
因此，Wentao改為從上海飛往歐洲，然後再搭乘一班飛往厄瓜多爾的 Quito。
然後，他乘坐公共汽車和船隻旅行了 1,000 英里，到達了與巴拿馬接壤的哥倫比亞小鎮Acandi。 從那裡開始，他與路上遇到的另外三名中國男子一起徒步7 天穿越 Darien 叢林，直到他們到達一個叢林難民營，那裡有數百名來自世界各地的移民。
Wentao 最終到達了加利福尼亞，整個旅程花費了大約 8,000 美元（6,575
英鎊）- 這是他的大部分積蓄。 在線估計平均成本在
5,000 美元到 10,000 美元之間，用於支付交通費、走私者、食物以及賄賂歹徒和腐敗警察的費用。 中國移民聲稱，他們被勒索的費用比其他人高，因為他們被視為更容易成為目標。
通往新生活的路還很長
在為這個故事接受 BBC 採訪的十幾名移民中，許多人表示，具有諷刺意味的是，在病毒大流行期間離開中國並不比環遊世界本身的艱苦跋涉更難。
根據政府數據，中國實施了嚴格的邊境管制以對抗新冠病毒，與 2019 年相比，2021 年國際客運航班減少了 97%。 北京還根據所謂 “非必要不出國 (feibiyao buchuguo)” 的政策, 停止簽發護照，該政策禁止人們在非 “絕對必要” 的情況下離開中國。
一些移民利用可疑機構偽造來自海外的工作機會或學校錄取通知書，以申請出境所需的護照。
儘管最近幾周中國已採取措施放鬆對 Covid 的限制，但文濤Wentao表示，這不會改變他離開的決定。
Wentao說: “無論零冠狀病毒是否存在，根本問題都沒有改變”; “在中國我看不到希望。”
中國政府沒有回覆 BBC 的置評請求，但此前曾在被問及走線 (zouxian) 受歡迎程度時, 曾為國家政策作出辯護。
BBC採訪的其他移民也表達了Wentao的擔憂。
他們中的大多數人會在抵達美國領土後申請庇護，通常是出於政治或宗教原因。 由於移民系統積壓，申請過程可能需要很多年才能完成。
與此同時，他們等待著，尋找可以謀生的工作。
大多數人定居在加利福尼亞或紐約，加入一個龐大的講中文的社區，以便更好地獲得工作和法律代理。
Wentao選擇了加利福尼亞州的Fremont，因為這裡離他的教堂更近。 他花了 1,900 美元買了一輛 2003 款Camry，它已行駛里程超過 170,000 英里，並且和其他移民住在同一屋簷下。 從星期一到星期六，他大約七點起床，然後開車去San 和與一個中國建築隊一起工作，每天掙 160 美元。 星期天早上，他去教堂。
作為熱門西方電視劇黃石公園的粉絲，Wentao夢想有一天能參觀這國家公園。
他說: “但在那之前，我會儲錢買一輛能帶我去那裡的新車” 。
So, as the Chinese economy loses momentum amid tough Covid-19 restrictions and a growing tide of authoritarianism this is gripping the country, some people begin to search for ways to leave the country. According to the Panamanian government, at least 1,300 people from China crossed the Darién in 2022. I do not expect in 2022 Chinese people are still risking their lives to seek a better life abroad, despite CCP is boasting that the country has achieved extensive success in its economy and in space exploration. The Chinese are leaving for economic and political reasons. Obviously people in Taiwan also prefer to stay away from mainland China for the same reason.
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