Authors: Bang Xiao, Xiaoning Mo and Jason Fang (Click to view: Chinese original, English original)
Zhang Yiming, a Chinese international student based in Heilongjiang Province, had planned to board an international flight to Sydney that morning. However, just 12 hours before his departure, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced the suspension of the 1 December border opening for certain temporary visa holders, citing the potential threat posed by the Omicron variant.
Upon hearing the news, Zhang cancelled his flight and travel plans and began waiting for the federal government to update its border control measures.
Zhang enrolled in the Juris Doctor (JD) programme at the University of Newcastle in July last year and had never set foot on Australian soil.
After a year of online classes, Zhang had hoped the pandemic’s impact on his studies abroad was coming to an end. Instead, all his plans were upended overnight, leaving him with nothing but disappointment and frustration.
“The Morrison government’s approach and border management policies are excessively strict. They are deeply irresponsible towards temporary visa holders, leaving international travellers with far too little time to prepare or make contingency plans.
“My personal feeling is that the chaotic and unpredictable border situation we saw in 2020 may be about to repeat itself.”
On the evening of 29 November, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced, following discussions with the National Security Committee, that the planned reopening of the border to temporary residents — including student visa, temporary work visa, and humanitarian visa holders — had been delayed to 15 December, to allow health authorities time to gather and assess the latest information on the Omicron variant.
Among recent arrivals to Australia, six cases of the Omicron variant have been detected in international travellers — five in New South Wales and one in the Northern Territory.
Prime Minister Morrison stated that the federal government would continue to take “measured and targeted” action under the guidance of medical experts, to ensure Australia could reopen safely and learn to live with the virus.
Meanwhile, Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews told the media that suspending the border reopening for 14 days was “appropriate,” and that Australia had always been opening its borders “as safely and swiftly as possible.”
But for international students like Zhang, who had already arranged their travel back to Australia, this represented yet another blow after nearly two years of uncertainty.
Zhang said he understood that Australia’s decision was aimed at protecting public health in the community, but the government’s announcement not only upended his plans overnight — it also threw his future and career prospects into uncertainty.
Trapped in a situation where he could only attend classes online rather than experience student life in Australia, he faced enormous pressure. He said “uncertainty” and “frustration” had been the two defining words of his eighteen months as a student.
Since February last year, more than 100,000 Chinese international students had been unable to enter Australia after the government suddenly closed its borders.
Like Zhang, many of them had made it a daily habit to search for and follow the latest news on Australia’s border policies each morning. For these students, studying abroad meant far more than attending classes — it was an opportunity to experience life in another country and develop as individuals.
“Even while studying online in Australia, you might be able to connect in some offline ways. Yes, we have the internet… but it’s simply not an immersive experience,” he said.
Zhang was not alone in facing this situation. Sarah Cai (transliteration), a mother from Nanjing, had planned to travel with her son from Guangzhou to Melbourne that evening, for him to enrol in Year 11 at a school in the town of Ballarat. Overnight, her plans were completely derailed.
“They’ll say the situation is changing and that policy is being made on expert advice. But all the procedural propriety cannot hide their incompetence and unwillingness to take responsibility — this is not the conduct of a great nation,” Ms Cai told ABC Chinese. She said she was deeply disappointed by the Australian government’s repeated failure to keep its word, and that her confidence in sending her child to study in Australia had been shaken.
Kirk Yan, a Melbourne-based migration agent who has long advocated for the rights of international students and temporary residents, also expressed strong concern. He told ABC Chinese that Prime Minister Morrison’s announcement would further erode confidence among people overseas in Australia’s border policies.
“Many international students booked flights as soon as the policy was announced last week, hoping to return to Australia and finally experience genuine campus life — looking forward to in-person classes. But now the possible changes have cast a shadow over everything once again,” said Kirk Yan.
What Did the Australian Government and University Groups Say?
Following Prime Minister Morrison’s announcement yesterday, federal Health Minister Greg Hunt confirmed at a press conference this morning that the current suspension of the international border reopening would continue until at least 15 December, though he did not provide specific details.
Meanwhile, Minister Hunt also confirmed that the previously planned travel bubble arrangements with South Korea and Japan had been delayed to 15 December.
He said the “overwhelming view” within the government was that the Omicron variant was “manageable,” and that the decision to delay reopening was taken out of “caution” and was temporary in nature.
“On the advice of Australia’s Chief Medical Officer, the government has decided to pause the next step of safely reopening Australia to skilled and student cohorts internationally until 15 December.
Federal Education Minister Alan Tudge told ABC that the Australian government would continue to monitor developments in line with public health advice.
“The 15-day pause will ensure we can gather information to better understand the Omicron variant — including vaccine efficacy, the extent of disease, including whether it may produce milder symptoms, and its transmissibility,” Minister Tudge said.
“I know this will be very disappointing for some students who want to come to Australia, but this is just a temporary pause.
Vicki Thomson, Chief Executive of the Group of Eight (Go8) university alliance, described the decision as “unfortunate” but understandable.
She told the ABC: “To all 30,000 international students [enrolled in] Group of Eight universities who are currently overseas — hang in there.”
“Every decision being made is in [the students’] best interests, so hopefully there will be a good outcome before Christmas.”
Entry Restrictions and Additional Quarantine Measures
As of now, those permitted to enter Australia include fully vaccinated Australian citizens, permanent residents and their immediate family members; double-vaccinated arrivals from New Zealand and Singapore; and those who have received an exemption to enter.
From Saturday 27 November, Australia announced the following tightened entry restrictions, effective immediately and in place until 15 December:
- Any person who is not an Australian citizen or permanent resident, or their immediate family member (including parents of citizens), who has been to any of eight southern African countries in the past 14 days will not be permitted to enter Australia. Those countries are: South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Lesotho, Eswatini, Malawi, and Mozambique. The list previously comprised nine countries; the Seychelles was removed on the advice of Professor Kelly.
- Australian citizens and permanent residents, as well as immediate family members (including parents), arriving from these eight southern African countries will be required to undertake 14 days of supervised quarantine, as arranged by the respective state or territory.
- Any person who has already arrived in Australia and has been to any of these eight countries in the past 14 days must immediately isolate and undergo COVID-19 testing, and quarantine for 14 days from the time they departed southern Africa.
- These measures also apply to arrivals from New Zealand and Singapore — such as international students or skilled workers — if they have been to any of these eight countries in the past 14 days.
- Australia has currently suspended all flights to and from these eight countries.
For international travellers arriving from other countries:
- All international travellers arriving in Victoria, along with their household contacts, are required to isolate at home or in a suitable residence for 72 hours upon arrival, even if they would previously have been exempt from quarantine.
- All international travellers arriving in New South Wales who have been to any overseas country in the 14 days prior to arrival must proceed directly to their place of residence or accommodation and isolate for 72 hours.
- For other states and territories, international arrivals will be required to quarantine for 14 days and will be subject to entry number limits.
