A Japanese student in her 20s has tested positive for COVID-19 after returning home from Taiwan on Saturday last week, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said yesterday, raising concern that it could be the first case of a local transmission since April 12.
The student arrived in southern Taiwan in late February and 125 people who came into close contact with her have been put in home isolation, while 15 other people have been placed under self-health management, said Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the CECC.
She has not been listed as a domestic case as the center must confirm the test result with Japan, but it might have been a case of local transmission, Chen added.
Photo: Tony Yao, Taipei Times
In related news, the CECC yesterday announced that foreign travelers from today can transit through Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, while border controls would be loosened on Monday next week to allow special entry to people from Hong Kong and Macau, and those with special humanitarian or emergency needs.
In line with “retaining strict border controls while loosening domestic restrictions,” the Ministry of Transportation and Communications has proposed a gradual lifting of the ban on international transit through Taiwan, which was implemented on March 24, Chen said.
As of midnight today, international travelers connecting to flights at Taoyuan airport would be taken along designated lanes for arrivals and departures, and escorted to separate rest areas, while food services and duty-free shopping would be under the control of specialized airport personnel, said Deputy Minister of the Interior Chen Tsung-yen (陳宗彥), deputy head of the CECC.
In the first phase, international transits would be allowed for three airline groups — EVA Airways Corp (長榮航空) and Uni Air (立榮航空); China Airlines Ltd (中華航空) and Mandarin Airlines (華信航空); and Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd (國泰航空) — but the transits must be within the same group and would be limited to eight hours, he said.
The policy is to be re-evaluated every two weeks and would be amended to match the situation on the ground, he added.
In loosening border controls, priority would first be given to people with humanitarian needs and business travelers, then tourists, as the CECC must ensure adequate quarantine capacity while the global COVID-19 situation remains grave, Chen Shih-chung said.
Starting on Monday next week, people from Hong Kong, Macau and those with special humanitarian or emergency needs can apply for special entry to fulfill a business contract; transfer within a multinational corporation; participate in trade or business exchanges; or as a holder of an Alien Resident Certificate, to reunite with a Taiwanese spouse or with their children, Chen Tsung-yen said.
However, Chinese travelers must apply for special approval to enter or transit through Taiwan, Chen Tsung-yen said, adding that there is still some uncertainty about the coronavirus situation in China.
Applicants for special entry must provide a certificate to their airline showing a negative result on a polymerase chain reaction test conducted within three days of boarding and undergo a 14-day quarantine period upon their arrival in Taiwan, the CECC said.
For faster entry upon arrival, the CECC said that arriving passengers should fill out the Quarantine System for Entry form available online at hdhq.mohw.gov.tw before checking in.
Taoyuan International Airport Corp (桃園國際機場公司) is to ensure that transitting passengers move along separate routes at the airport, Minister of Transportation and Communications Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said.
The airport simulated different scenarios and conducted drills for one month, such as training airport employees on how to safely escort transit passengers to duty-free shops, Lin added.
Additional reporting by Shelley Shan
NEXT GENERATION: The four plants in the Central Taiwan Science Park, designated Fab 25, would consist of four 1.4-nanometer wafer manufacturing plants, TSMC said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) plans to begin construction of four new plants later this year, with the aim to officially launch production of 2-nanometer semiconductor wafers by late 2028, Central Taiwan Science Park Bureau director-general Hsu Maw-shin (許茂新) said. Hsu made the announcement at an event on Friday evening celebrating the Central Taiwan Science Park’s 22nd anniversary. The second phase of the park’s expansion would commence with the initial construction of water detention ponds and other structures aimed at soil and water conservation, Hsu said. TSMC has officially leased the land, with the Central Taiwan Science Park having handed over the
The Philippines is working behind the scenes to enhance its defensive cooperation with Taiwan, the Washington Post said in a report published on Monday. “It would be hiding from the obvious to say that Taiwan’s security will not affect us,” Philippine Secretary of National Defense Gilbert Teodoro Jr told the paper in an interview on Thursday last week. Although there has been no formal change to the Philippines’ diplomatic stance on recognizing Taiwan, Manila is increasingly concerned about Chinese encroachment in the South China Sea, the report said. The number of Chinese vessels in the seas around the Philippines, as well as Chinese
URBAN COMBAT: FIM-92 Stinger shoulder-fired missiles from the US made a rare public appearance during early-morning drills simulating an invasion of the Taipei MRT The ongoing Han Kuang military exercises entered their sixth day yesterday, simulating repelling enemy landings in Penghu County, setting up fortifications in Tainan, laying mines in waters in Kaohsiung and conducting urban combat drills in Taipei. At 5am in Penghu — part of the exercise’s first combat zone — participating units responded to a simulated rapid enemy landing on beaches, combining infantry as well as armored personnel. First Combat Zone Commander Chen Chun-yuan (陳俊源) led the combined armed troops utilizing a variety of weapons systems. Wang Keng-sheng (王鏗勝), the commander in charge of the Penghu Defense Command’s mechanized battalion, said he would give
AUKUS: The Australian Ambassador to the US said his country is working with the Pentagon and he is confident that submarine issues will be resolved Australian Ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd on Friday said that if Taiwan were to fall to China’s occupation, it would unleash China’s military capacities and capabilities more broadly. He also said his country is working with the Pentagon on the US Department of Defense’s review of the AUKUS submarine project and is confident that all issues raised will be resolved. Rudd, who served as Australian prime minister from 2007 to 2010 and for three months in 2013, made the remarks at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado and stressed the longstanding US-Australia alliance and his close relationship with the US Undersecretary