The government plans to rank countries based on their COVID-19 risks to determine how to treat tourists and other travelers from those nations once Taiwan reopens its borders, but it is still working out the categories, a top health official told lawmakers yesterday.
“We would divide countries around the world into several categories. One category would comprise those countries with very few confirmed COVID-19 cases, such as New Zealand and Palau. Travelers from the countries in this category would only need to practice self-health management,” Centers for Disease Control Deputy Director-General Chuang Jen-hsiang (莊人祥) told a Legislative Yuan seminar hosted by Democratic Progressive Party lawmakers Mark Ho (何志偉) and Su Chiao-hui (蘇巧慧).
“Tourists from low-risk countries, such as Vietnam and Brunei, might be asked to undergo quarantine for five to six days after entering the country,” he said.
Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times
Taiwan has not had any confirmed domestic COVID-19 cases for 50 consecutive days, but there are now more than 6 million confirmed cases in the rest of the world, with the number rising in South America and Southeast Asia, Chuang said.
This means the government would face tremendous pressure when it decides to reopen Taiwan’s borders, he said.
“The most important thing is whether the countries whose tourists are allowed to enter Taiwan without having to follow quarantine requirements would allow Taiwanese tourists to do the same there. We need to work with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to sort out the issues,” he said.
It is also crucial that people maintain the habit of wearing masks so that the nation can quickly and effectively contain a potential outbreak after the borders are reopened, he added.
Ho and Su have proposed that the government form an international travel alliance with other nations that have relatively few confirmed cases of COVID-19.
They cited Japan as an example, which is mulling lifting its disease-prevention restrictions imposed on business travelers as well as tourists from member states of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).
Taiwan could follow suit by first allowing tourists from countries where the pandemic has been effectively contained and disease-prevention information is transparent, the lawmakers said.
Department of East Asia and Pacific Affairs Deputy Director Su Ying-chun (蘇瑩君) said the foreign ministry has told Japan that Taiwan would like to be included in its initiative, and Tokyo is assessing the possibility.
Lee Ping-ing (李秉穎), a National Taiwan University Hospital pediatrician and consultant for the Central Epidemic Command Center, urged caution on border opening.
“The most challenging part would be how to define countries that are safe to travel to. How many domestic infection cases should the country have? Does it have the capacity to conduct screening tests? Can we trust its disease-prevention reports? How high would the risk of contracting COVID-19 be when traveling there?” Lee said.
It might be difficult to form a travel alliance with CPTPP members since they might have different disease-prevention standards, and accurate and updated information is only available if everyone agrees to share their data, Lee said.
DETERRENCE: With 1,000 indigenous Hsiung Feng II and III missiles and 400 Harpoon missiles, the nation would boast the highest anti-ship missile density in the world With Taiwan wrapping up mass production of Hsiung Feng II and III missiles by December and an influx of Harpoon missiles from the US, Taiwan would have the highest density of anti-ship missiles in the world, a source said yesterday. Taiwan is to wrap up mass production of the indigenous anti-ship missiles by the end of year, as the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology has been meeting production targets ahead of schedule, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said. Combined with the 400 Harpoon anti-ship missiles Taiwan expects to receive from the US by 2028, the nation would have
North Korea yesterday fired about 10 ballistic missiles to the sea toward Japan, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said, days after Pyongyang warned of “terrible consequences” over ongoing South Korea-US military drills. Pyongyang recently dashed hopes of a diplomatic thaw with Seoul, Washington’s security ally, describing its latest peace efforts as a “clumsy, deceptive farce.” Seoul’s military detected “around 10 ballistic missiles launched from the Sunan area in North Korea toward the East Sea [Sea of Japan] at around 1:20pm,” JCS said in a statement, referring to South Korea’s name for the body of water. The missiles
North Korea tested nuclear-capable rocket launchers, state media reported yesterday, a day after Seoul detected the launch of about 10 ballistic missiles. The test comes after South Korean and US forces launched their springtime military drills, due to run until Thursday. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Saturday oversaw the testing of the multiple rocket launcher system (MRLS), the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. The test involved 12 600mm-caliber ultra-precision multiple rocket launchers and two artillery companies, it said. Kim said the drill gave Pyongyang’s enemies, within the 420km striking range, a sense of “uneasiness” and “a deep understanding
‘UNWAVERING FRIENDSHIP’: A representative of a Japanese group that co-organized a memorial, said he hopes Japanese never forget Taiwan’s kindness President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday marked the 15th anniversary of the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, urging continued cooperation between Taiwan and Japan on disaster prevention and humanitarian assistance. Lai wrote on social media that Taiwan and Japan have always helped each other in the aftermath of major disasters. The magnitude 9 earthquake struck northeastern Japan on March 11, 2011, triggering a massive tsunami that claimed more than 19,000 lives, according to data from Japanese authorities. Following the disaster, Taiwan donated more than US$240 million in aid, making it one of the largest contributors of financial assistance to Japan. In addition to cash donations and
RSS