The cycle of UK lockdowns claims another holiday this year. Chinese Lunar New Year in 2021 falls on 12 February; right in the middle of the latest national lockdown.
This means like Eid and Christmas last year, Chinese New Year won’t escape disruption caused by the pandemic. The tightest restrictions since last March have made traditional celebrations impossible.
Friends and family can’t gather, and plans for community events, parades and fireworks have ground to a halt. With social interaction restricted to single households, support bubbles and cyberspace, celebrating Spring Festival in the UK will be unlike any other year before it.
The year of the Ox in the land of lockdown.
The parades, performances, parties and galas that would be held up and down the country in a normal year are out of the question. The absence of the massive, colourful Chinese New Year parade that runs past London’s Chinatown will certainly be noticeable.
Large family get togethers are a hugely important part of Chinese New Year celebrations, and for British Chinese families gatherings will be limited to single households.
Not being able to gather with friends will be particularly hard on Overseas Chinese students and Chinese-born UK residents as loneliness and isolation kicks in. On top of this, the 14-day quarantine period needed to enter China makes it hard for Chinese citizens to return home to see their families for the holidays.
Despite these setbacks, people will still be able to ring in the year of the Ox in non-traditional ways. Carol Huang, a former teacher and PHD student living in Sheffield will be joining friends and family back home for a group meal online, as many others will be doing.
Organisations like the Chinese embassy, the Museum of London are shifting their Chinese New Year celebrations online, along with other annual galas. It seems that even with tight restrictions, the internet provides many with a way to spend time with their loved ones.
What’s happening in China?
In China, the situation is much better, although recent outbreaks have meant some restrictions. Only around 22 million people in four cities are under tough lockdown measures.
But that’s not to say that things are normal for the rest of the country.
Chinese New Year sees hundreds of millions of people travel across the country to see families. Around a billion trips are made in a 40 day window in the world’s biggest annual human migration.
Even without a national lockdown, the government has strongly advised people not to travel home this year, for fear that this could be a super spreader event. (Those that do need to provide a negative Covid test.) Some localities are even incentivising urban-dwelling migrant workers to avoid returning to the countryside.
And it seems people are heeding this advice as people all over the country are staying put. The Ministry of Transport announced that it expected the number of trips taken this year to be down 60% from 2019.
But millions will still choose to travel to spend time with their families, community events and celebrations will still take place, and families living in the same area won’t really be affected.