The nation marked its 49th day with no new domestic COVID-19 cases yesterday, and there were no new imported cases, but that does not mean the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) can relax its attention, Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the center, said yesterday in Tainan as he and a team of health officials wrapped up a weekend visit to the city.
The visit is part of the center’s efforts to promote domestic travel under the “new disease prevention lifestyle.”
Among the 442 confirmed cases, 423 have been released from isolation and 12 people remain hospitalized, Chen said at the center’s daily news conference, which was held at the Jian Shan Pi Jianganan Resort (尖山埤江南渡假村), the second time it has be held outside of Taipei.
Photo: Wang Han-ping, Taipei Times
Chen joked with reporters that he had not been working while in Tainan, simply enjoying seeing the sights, trying various local delicacies and appreciating the warmth of the residents’ welcome.
Asked if he was worried that people will let their guard down following the center’s announcement on Friday that it would loosen disease-prevention regulations starting from Sunday, including those barring food sampling at supermarkets and night markets, Chen said: “It is inevitable that people might feel more relaxed after June 7, just like people slacken after mid-term exams are over.”
“That is why in April we began promoting a ‘new disease prevention lifestyle,’” he said.
Photo: CNA
“I have to bore people by repeatedly reminding them every day to wear a mask or keep safe social distances, wash their hands frequently, take their temperature and implement a real-name registration system, because I hope they internalize the ‘new disease prevention lifestyle’ into their daily habits,” the minister said.
While people are excited about easing the regulations, the move will be a big test for the CECC, so the health officials will have to pay more attention to any abnormal signs in local communities, Chen said.
It is likely that by Sunday, no domestic cases would have been reported for 56 consecutive days, or four incubations periods, which specialists agree would make local communities very safe, he said.
Photo: Chien Jung-fong, Taipei Times
However, there is still concern about more imported cases, so the center would continue to carefully monitor prevention measures at the borders.
Given the enthusiasm shown by the large crowds that greeted Chen wherever he went in Tainan — so many people were on hand on Guohua Street (國華街) he could barely make headway — reporters asked if such visits might hamper efforts to promote a “new disease prevention lifestyle.”
The main principle of this lifestyle is that people can choose between practicing social distancing or wearing a mask, so everyone can choose what they feel is suitable for them, Chen said.
After leaving Tainan yesterday, Chen and his team stopped in Taichung to plug domestic tourism before heading back to Taipei.
The US government has signed defense cooperation agreements with Japan and the Philippines to boost the deterrence capabilities of countries in the first island chain, a report by the National Security Bureau (NSB) showed. The main countries on the first island chain include the two nations and Taiwan. The bureau is to present the report at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee tomorrow. The US military has deployed Typhon missile systems to Japan’s Yamaguchi Prefecture and Zambales province in the Philippines during their joint military exercises. It has also installed NMESIS anti-ship systems in Japan’s Okinawa
TRAGEDY STRIKES TAIPEI: The suspect died after falling off a building after he threw smoke grenades into Taipei Main Station and went on a killing spree in Zhongshan A 27-year-old suspect allegedly threw smoke grenades in Taipei Main Station and then proceeded to Zhongshan MRT Station in a random killing spree that resulted in the death of the suspect and two other civilians, and seven injured, including one in critical condition, as of press time last night. The suspect, identified as a man surnamed Chang Wen (張文), allegedly began the attack at Taipei Main Station, the Taipei Fire Department said, adding that it received a report at 5:24pm that smoke grenades had been thrown in the station. One man in his 50s was rushed to hospital after a cardiac arrest
ON ALERT: Taiwan’s partners would issue warnings if China attempted to use Interpol to target Taiwanese, and the global body has mechanisms to prevent it, an official said China has stationed two to four people specializing in Taiwan affairs at its embassies in several democratic countries to monitor and harass Taiwanese, actions that the host nations would not tolerate, National Security Bureau (NSB) Director-General Tsai Ming-yen (蔡明彥) said yesterday. Tsai made the comments at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, which asked him and Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) to report on potential conflicts in the Taiwan Strait and military preparedness. Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Michelle Lin (林楚茵) expressed concern that Beijing has posted personnel from China’s Taiwan Affairs Office to its
‘ILLEGAL RULING’: The KMT and the TPP slammed the Constitutional Court judgement, saying it contravened the law and was trying to clear the way for a ‘green dictatorship’ The Constitutional Court yesterday ruled that amendments to the Constitutional Court Procedure Act (憲法訴訟法) passed by the Legislative Yuan last year are unconstitutional, as they contravene due legislative process and separation of powers. The Legislative Yuan on Dec. 20 last year passed amendments stipulating that no fewer than 10 grand justices must take part in deliberations of the Constitutional Court, and at least nine grand justices must agree to declare a law unconstitutional. The Executive Yuan on Jan. 2 requested that lawmakers reconsider the bill, but the Legislative Yuan, under a combined majority of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party
RSS