Hong Kong delegates told to quarantine before Two Sessions

As Hong Kong grapples with its most serious Covid-19 outbreak yet, the city's delegates to the Two Sessions, China's largest political gathering of the year, have been ordered to quarantine before the meetings, ending speculation that they might be barred from physically attending.

Previously, special arrangements had been made for deputies, as delegates are referred to in the Chinese system, allowing for quarantine-free travel between Hong Kong and Beijing.

But according to a notice sent to delegates on Friday, those attending the meetings this year will have to quarantine for seven days in Shenzhen before travelling on to Beijing.

Mainland China's borders are still largely shut to outsiders and anyone entering is subject to a minimum 14-day quarantine.

"I will be leaving for Shenzhen this Saturday where I will quarantine for seven days before heading to Beijing to attend the (National People's Congress) Standing Committee meeting," Mr Tam Yiu Chung, Hong Kong's only representative to China's top lawmaking body, told The Sunday Times on Thursday.

The Standing Committee meeting on Feb 27 will largely focus on preparatory work for the full National People's Congress (NPC) meeting that starts March 5.

China's top political advisory committee, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), will start gathering from March 4.

Bringing together lawmakers and representatives from across the country, including the Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macau, the meetings are collectively referred to as the Two Sessions, or lianghui.

But as Covid-19 cases started to climb in Hong Kong, concerns emerged that the mainland, in strict pursuit of a zero-Covid-19 policy, might stop the city's officials from travelling to Beijing.

President Xi Jinping had also earlier this week issued rare instructions for Hong Kong officials to put a lid on the virus. An online briefing last Tuesday to review the past year's work further sparked speculation of a travel ban, with many seeing it as a "dress rehearsal" for a virtual meeting.

Hong Kong has 36 deputies at the NPC and about 200 more in the CPPCC.