The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday said that after border controls are eased, it would screen all foreign visitors to Taiwan for COVID-19 upon arrival and permit them entry only if they test negative in a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test.
Visitors would also be required to receive follow-up testing and perform self-health management, based on their activities in the nation, said Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the center.
A mass screening of all foreign visitors at the airport would not be sufficient, as some confirmed cases did not test positive until they were already under home quarantine, he added.
Photo: Liberty Times file photograph
The center would not implement mass screening on all returning Taiwanese because the government is obligated to treat infected citizens, but it is not obliged to treat foreign visitors, and carelessly allowing infected people to enter might cause a local outbreak, he said.
In related news, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications yesterday said that it is considering allowing Taiwan’s international airlines to offer cargo services to and from six cities in China — Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Chongqing, Qingdao, Ningbo and Changsha — as part of an effort to aid the airline industry, which has been significantly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
To contain the coronavirus outbreak, the government had limited cross-strait flights to four Chinese cities — Beijing, Xiamen, Chengdu and Shanghai, home to Hongqiao International Airport, which is closed to international flights.
Ministry officials said that many Chinese cities have ended lockdowns, which have consequently increased demand for goods, but they chose these six cities as they have higher cargo demands than others.
As the nation’s passenger flight service is expected to recover slowly and the government still needs to control the spread of the virus, ministry officials said it hoped that the CECC would allow carriers to offer cargo service to reduce their financial losses.
On the proposal of allowing airlines to increase cross-strait cargo flights, Chen last month said that he “had no reason to object if it is done with proper planning.”
Deputy Minister of the Interior Chen Tsung-yen (陳宗彥), who is deputy head of the center, on May 24 said that the CECC would consider opening cargo flights to more Chinese cities using passenger aircraft, but no airline had yet submitted such a request.
China Airlines Ltd (CAL, 華航) said it would first apply for cargo services in Guangzhou and Shenzhen once it secures permission to do so.
EVA Airlines (EVA, 長榮航空) said it is interested in all cities with high demand for goods, adding that it has submitted requests to the Civil Aeronautics Administration.
CAL’s revenue from cargo services in April reached NT$7.395 billion (US$248 million), whereas revenue from passenger flight service was only NT$400 million.
EVA’s revenue in April also topped NT$4.202 billion, but passenger flight revenue was NT$448 million.
Dimerco Express Group (中菲行國際物流), which offers global freight-forwarding and logistics services, saw consolidated revenue in April rise by 59.46 percent to NT$348 million.
In other news, Star Cruises said it plans to offer island-hopping tours to outlying islands, including Kinmen, Penghu and Lienchiang counties, once it receives government approval.
The cruise ship, Explorer Dream, can accommodate 3,600 passengers, but it would only take 1,000 on the tour, it said.
The tour would last two to four days, the company said, adding that it would observe the Centers for Disease Control’s disease prevention guidelines.
Additional reporting by Lee I-chia
FALSE DOCUMENTS? Actor William Liao said he was ‘voluntarily cooperating’ with police after a suspect was accused of helping to produce false medical certificates Police yesterday questioned at least six entertainers amid allegations of evasion of compulsory military service, with Lee Chuan (李銓), a member of boy band Choc7 (超克7), and actor Daniel Chen (陳大天) among those summoned. The New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office in January launched an investigation into a group that was allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified medical documents. Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) has been accused of being one of the group’s clients. As the investigation expanded, investigators at New Taipei City’s Yonghe Precinct said that other entertainers commissioned the group to obtain false documents. The main suspect, a man surnamed
DEMOGRAPHICS: Robotics is the most promising answer to looming labor woes, the long-term care system and national contingency response, an official said Taiwan is to launch a five-year plan to boost the robotics industry in a bid to address labor shortages stemming from a declining and aging population, the Executive Yuan said yesterday. The government approved the initiative, dubbed the Smart Robotics Industry Promotion Plan, via executive order, senior officials told a post-Cabinet meeting news conference in Taipei. Taiwan’s population decline would strain the economy and the nation’s ability to care for vulnerable and elderly people, said Peter Hong (洪樂文), who heads the National Science and Technology Council’s (NSTC) Department of Engineering and Technologies. Projections show that the proportion of Taiwanese 65 or older would
The government is considering polices to increase rental subsidies for people living in social housing who get married and have children, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday. During an interview with the Plain Law Movement (法律白話文) podcast, Cho said that housing prices cannot be brought down overnight without affecting banks and mortgages. Therefore, the government is focusing on providing more aid for young people by taking 3 to 5 percent of urban renewal projects and zone expropriations and using that land for social housing, he said. Single people living in social housing who get married and become parents could obtain 50 percent more
Democracies must remain united in the face of a shifting geopolitical landscape, former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) told the Copenhagen Democracy Summit on Tuesday, while emphasizing the importance of Taiwan’s security to the world. “Taiwan’s security is essential to regional stability and to defending democratic values amid mounting authoritarianism,” Tsai said at the annual forum in the Danish capital. Noting a “new geopolitical landscape” in which global trade and security face “uncertainty and unpredictability,” Tsai said that democracies must remain united and be more committed to building up resilience together in the face of challenges. Resilience “allows us to absorb shocks, adapt under
RSS