Foreigners coming to Beijing will no longer have to lodge at
government designated hotels, but be free to stay where they
choose, announced a senior official with the Beijing Public
Security Bureau on Tuesday.
Zhang Jiawang, vice-director of the bureau, said the municipal
government will this year abolish the long-standing rule that
foreign visitors may only be accommodated at hotels authorized by
the capital's authorities.
Zhang, also a deputy to the ongoing 12th Beijing Municipal People's
Congress, which runs between January 13 to 19, said the move was a
major reform to the city's public security system and one designed
to better meet the needs of the influx of more and more foreigners
into the capital following China's accession to the World Trade
Organization.
Statistics indicate that more than 3 million overseas tourists
visited Beijing last year. The 500 or so hotels currently allowed
to welcome foreigners can barely meet the huge demand, a factor
which is causing considerable inconvenience.
"When the former restriction is annulled, foreigners will enjoy
parity of treatment to Chinese people in being able to choose any
hotel they like to stay in, or even be allowed to stay at a
Beijinger's home," said Zhang, speaking on the sidelines of the
Congress.
To
better serve overseas visitors, Zhang said his bureau and other
related authorities were setting up a network system to link all
the city's computerized hotel registers.
Once the network is up-and-running, the title of "foreign approved
hotel" will fade into history and all hotels will be entitled to
accept expatriates, a move which will boost their revenues and
provide greater choice for guests.
Under the new regulations if an overseas visitor wants to stay in a
local resident's home, the host should firstly inform their local
police sub-station, said Zhang.
Many other provinces and cities around China have already lifted
restrictions on foreigners accommodation, including Shanghai, and
provinces such as Guangdong, Yunnan, Hubei and Jiangxi.
With China's economic development and ever-greater involvement in
the international community, foreigners will be able to enjoy more
relaxed policies and more equitable treatment, added Zhang.
(China Daily January 16, 2003)