From the other side of the Pacific, Wang left his family behind and traveled thousands of miles by plane, bus, boat, and motorcycle. He traversed deep jungles, crossed barren mountains, and spent days in multiple jails. It was all about American freedom and opportunity.
"In the years since Xi Jinping came to power, China's policies are getting tighter, the economy is not doing well, and [his] dictatorship is getting worse." '” Wang told his CNN.
"He's just another version of Mao Zedong," adds Wang, the founder of the Chinese Communist Party who built a personality cult around himself and died in 1976. ruled until
"Xi" will soon have another term in office and may remain in power indefinitely. I see no hope. "
As China's most powerful leader in decades, Mr. Xi is widely expected to secure an unprecedented third term at a key political meeting this fall. He vowed to achieve a "great rejuvenation" for the nation and envisioned a China that would overtake, if not match, the West in power and strength.
As further evidence of China's rise and the United States' decline, the ruling Communist Party under Xi Jinping has cited Beijing's ability to quickly eradicate the Covid outbreak and its political model. advertises itself as superior to Western democracies.
China's state media, meanwhile, relentlessly highlight racial inequality, gun violence, and political polarization as evidence of American pedigree.
But the burgeoning popularity of the running philosophy, and the trip to the United States taken by Wang and others, is a complete rejection of that narrative. Xi Jinping's promise to make China great again.
"I want to leave"
Most of the adherents of the management philosophy come from middle- and upper-class families in China and migrate legally through education. Having the means to do a job or an investment.
But Mr. Wang, who used to run his tapioca tea shop in an economically remote area of eastern China, says he doesn't have the money or the skills to look for schools or jobs in the United States.
After graduating from a vocational high school in 2008, Wang did his graphic design work in eastern Zhejiang for several years. Frustrated by low wages and stagnant career growth, he switched to online retail on the boom of China's internet sector.
As the industry grew, it became more competitive and marginal. Mr. Wang retired in 2020 and returned to his hometown to open a bubble tea shop with his friends.
By then, China had adopted a relentless zero-Covid policy, with intensive surveillance of its 1.4 billion citizens, mass testing, mass quarantines, and snapping lockdowns. depends on
Wang's business was hit hard by the restrictions.
"I cannot make a living and have to raise two children," said the divorced Wang. "I don't want lockdown. I want to get out."
However, his work, marriage and family life kept him busy, and the king did not bother to go out to seek opportunities to emigrate. "Now that I'm divorced, it's no longer a burden. I decided to go it alone and leave my two children with my parents," he said, adding that he hopes the children will join him later. rice field.
The King set his sights on one destination, America. He never left China and he didn't speak English, but he says he learned about the United States from TV shows and movies.
"My impression of the United States is that it is a free, democratic, open, vibrant country. You can accumulate wealth through your own efforts," he said. said.
A Perilous Journey across Land and Sea
Leaving China and entering an era free of COVID-19 will not be easy.
Since early 2020, China has largely closed its borders to prevent the coronavirus. This effort seems increasingly futile in the face of highly contagious variants of Omicron.
Beijing says the ban is to curb the spread of Covid, but many in China see it as a way to make immigration more difficult. .
Through his chats online and his group, Wang discovered a network of Chinese people planning to illegally immigrate to America via Ecuador in South America.
He applied to a language school in Quito, Ecuador's capital, and used the school's admission letter to apply for a passport. Authorities initially denied his application, but he eventually gave the passport to Wang after he submitted a series of supporting documents.
The king left China in his April, leaving his family in darkness. "I told them I was going to look for work in Zhejiang again. I didn't want them to worry while I was moving," he said.
Wang Kun takes a boat from Colombia to Panama with other immigrants.
Wang made two stopovers on flights before he reached Quito, from where he took a bus over 1,000 miles to reach Colombia. arrived at the coastal town of He then traveled by boat to Panama with dozens of other immigrants. He was thrilled with his ride and took a selfie video with the passenger sitting behind him. They laughed, cheered and gave a thumbs up.
However, the journey ahead was nearly exhausting him. Wang spent three days hiking through Panama's dense rainforest, wading through mud, crossing rivers and climbing cliffs. "It was very painful. I felt like a walking corpse. After 12 hours of walking, at some point I thought I was going to die," he said.
Migrants crossing a river in Panama's rainforest.
Wan emerged from the jungle and boarded a canoe to a refugee camp. On the way, water leaked into the ship and it almost capsized, so Mr. Wang and other passengers desperately scooped up the water. In the
camp, the king found refugees from all over the world. From there he spent seven days on buses to Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras and Guatemala before he boarded another boat and headed for the Mexican border, where he was detained by police for illegal entry.
After five days the king was released and he was told to leave Mexico within twenty days. He then paid the smugglers thousands of dollars to go to Mexico City. He was crammed into the back of a truck with dozens of migrants, barely able to move and unable to stretch his legs. Then he, along with 20 other people, was shoved into a hot, non-air-conditioned van with the windows closed.
Dozens of migrants are crammed into truck beds bound for Mexico City.
It was over 104 degrees Fahrenheit inside the van, said the king.
In Mexico City he bought a motorcycle and along with fellow Chinese immigrants he met along the way, he rode the 1,600 miles (1,600 miles) to the U.S. border. First up the coast, then across the desert.
When CNN met Wang in Mexicali near the US border on June 4, he looked relaxed and calm. The trip was more dangerous than he expected, but Wang said it was worth it.
"I want my children to get a better education," he said, adding that the patriotic education taught in Chinese schools is "brainwashing" his children.
"I don't want to be oppressed. I want freedom," he said.
Journey of the Kings from Panama to Mexico.
One of many desperate immigrants,
Wan's journey to America was rare. Extreme as it may be, he is not the only one to take a dangerous path.
CNN spoke to other Chinese who were trying to immigrate illegally to the United States, including a man who fled China by walking across the border into Vietnam in June. From there, he flew to Ecuador and followed the same route as Wang to the border with Mexico. He said he nearly died in the rainforest of Panama and has now ended up in Mexico City.
According to the United Nations Refugee Agency, the number of Chinese nationals seeking asylum has increased nearly eightfold in the decade since Xi Jinping came to power, reaching nearly 120,000 by 2021. In America, about 75% of them seek asylum.
On the Chinese Internet, searches for "migrant" began to surge in his March.Many people struggled to get basic necessities and food during lockdowns across China.
Discussion forums with detailed tips on how to leave China have gone viral on social media, and immigration lawyers say inquiries wishing to leave China have surged during the pandemic. It is said that it increased rapidly during the period.
"Inquiries are hundreds of times higher than they were before," said Shanghai-based immigration attorney Edward Lehman.
He Ying Cao, an immigration lawyer in New York, said that in 1949, hundreds of millions of people left China in fear of the new government. "Now we feel a similar fear," he said.
In response to CNN's request for comment, China's foreign ministry defended her Covid policy in the country, calling China "a country full of vitality and hope."
New life in America
In Mexicali, the day after he spoke to CNN, Wang rode his bike up the hill and began hiking the trails heading north. rice field. Until he came across a metal wire half trampled to the ground.
He didn't pay much attention and quickly walked over it. It wasn't until 10 minutes later that he smiled with relief as he realized the wire marked the border. He finally made it to America.
He walked through the wilderness for hours. The steep and rugged terrain left my sneakers in tatters. He then turned himself in to border control and was detained for several days before he was released pending an immigration case hearing.
On the night of the 4th of July, the king wandered alone through the streets admiring the fireworks overhead.
CNN said he met Wang in Los Angeles in late July. He temporarily settled in a community of Chinese immigrants and made friends who had emigrated to America like him.
But Wang knows it will be many years before he can see his family again.
He eventually intended to tell his family of the escape, but his son learned of it early. A 12-year-old boy shared Wang's Apple account and discovered that his father's IP address was in the United States.
"Dad told him he came to America to make a lot of money for you and fight for your bright future," Wang said.
He says he intends to seek political asylum. If his application is denied, Wang said he may ask his children to take the same dangerous route to America when they are older.
"My heart aches for them. I want to bring them to America as soon as possible. The longer it takes, the more they will be affected by the Chinese education." "It will be difficult for them to change," he said.
Ms. Wang is getting her driver's license, training to be a masseuse, and studying English every day while she waits to be called in for an immigration case hearing. He plans to eventually become a truck driver in the United States.
"It's worth it. In America, you can see the sun. You can see the ocean. You can do whatever you want. You can work hard for what you love," he said. Told.