Chinese students at UK universities are “fleeing back to China” amid concerns about the British government’s handling of the spread of the virus and an increase in racist attacks triggered by so-called maskaphobia.

While some students have already returned, many of those who remain are struggling to secure seats on a dwindling number of flights, which are being sold at inflated prices. There are also reports that some are trying to book private jets to get home.

“I was a bit shocked by how quickly the UK is hit by the coronavirus,” said Tao Wang, a politics PhD student at the University of Manchester. “Many Chinese students are now fleeing back to China, and I have been struggling to make a decision.”

Wang said many in the Chinese student community believed they would now be safer in China than in the UK, and their families were begging them to return. “I think people are very suspicious about the [UK] government measures. Here, until now, we’ve seen some soft measures calling for people to wash their hands. As a Chinese student you expect more draconian measures.”

Chinese students also report an increase in racist attacks as a result of the Covid-19 crisis, with some wearing masks becoming targets for racists.

Yinxuan Huang, a sociology research fellow at City University London, has been conducting research among Chinese Christian communities in the UK, who have been supporting Chinese students during the coronavirus crisis.

Coronavirus fears fuel racism and hostility, say British-Chinese Read more

“Almost all incidents they reported were associated with ‘maskaphobia’,” said Huang, which is a fear of masks which then triggered racist attacks. “Most of the victims – some got called ‘virus’ and others got shoved – were wearing masks when attacked.

“Many Chinese students feel that the issue of the mask is the single biggest cultural shock they have ever experienced in the UK. They are now facing a dilemma and have to choose between two bad choices - insecurity (for coronavirus) and fear (for racism).”

One 24-year-old Chinese postgraduate student at the University of Manchester described an incident while out shopping in the city centre with a friend. “Both of us wore face masks. When we were crossing the road, a car passed by and slowed down as it approached us.

“At first, I thought that maybe they just want to let us go first, like most other polite and friendly drivers I met before. But instead, they rolled down the window, and sneezed at us, and then laughed away. Many of my Chinese friends have experienced similar discrimination recently, which has a very bad impact on our study abroad experience.”

A 26-year-old Chinese postgraduate student, also in Manchester, said Chinese students were now staying indoors and ordering food online rather than going shopping. “We are not only afraid of coronavirus, but the violence brought by racism is also much more scary now. I have got the feeling I am an outsider in the UK. And now I finally find we are not welcomed by British people. Diversity sounds like a joke.”

Universities in the UK have welcomed growing numbers of students from China in recent years. According to the Higher Education Statistics Agency, the number rose above 120,000 for the first time last year, up from 89,000 in 2014-15.

Wang commented: “International students choose to study abroad in countries like the UK for a reason. That is, they believe that this is a place that values tolerance, equality, diversity and rule of law. The growing coronavirus-related racism is truly disturbing.

“It may well lead some to question: why should I spend tens of thousands of pounds and travel thousands miles away from home to study in a place where I could be attacked simply because of my skin colour, or because I wear a face mask?”