All three territories have kept their COVID-19 cases low despite strong links to China
Since she learned of the coronavirus outbreak, Amy Ho’s daily routine has gotten a bit more complicated. Coming home now involves sanitizing her shoes, washing her hands with soap and water, taking off her medical mask and changing her clothes.
Though SARS devastated many Asian metropolises, in its wake, some doubled down on preparing for the next crisis. Story continuesAct quicklyFor Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong, the story could easily have been one of catastrophe. The novel coronavirus emerged just in time for Lunar New Year, when millions travel across the region in the world’s largest annual human migration. All three territories are closely interconnected with mainland China, with direct flights to Wuhan, the outbreak’s epicenter.
Taiwan, just 81 miles from mainland China, was expected to have among the highest number of imported cases, he adds. But it has now tallied just 50 cases—fewer than Slovenia. Rigorous detection and strict quarantineWhen the virus began crossing China’s borders in January, Singapore appeared fated for a large-scale outbreak. The tiny city-state was the third country to report cases of COVID-19, and by mid-February, had recorded over 80 infections, the highest outside the Chinese mainland.
To make quarantine less onerous, the government offers self-employed people $100 Singapore dollars per day, while employers are prohibited from detracting quarantine days from staffers’ annual leave. Social distancing and banning mass gatheringsPerched just across the border from the mainland’s health crisis, Hong Kong quickly put social distancing into practice. Schools remain closed through Easter. Normally bustling shopping streets, in some of the world’s most densely packed districts, are largely devoid of foot traffic as residents voluntarily stay sequestered at home. Many businesses have either shuttered or asked employees to work from home.
These gains come despite mistrust of the government, which runs deep after nine months of often violent street demonstrations. But faith in the public health system—one of the world’s best—remains intact. People don’t want to get sick, Hui says, “so they are actually compliant with public health measures even though they don’t like the government.”
The example stands out amid a series of blunders in coronavirus messaging elsewhere. President Donald Trump has contradicted government scientists to downplay the threat, suggest the imminent availability of a vaccine and, in his televised Oval Office speech Wednesday, deliver inaccurate policy pronouncements. In South Korea, President Moon Jae-in infamously declared the worst to be over just before cases mushroomed, prompting political backlash.
Norge Siste Nytt, Norge Overskrifter
Similar News:Du kan også lese nyheter som ligner på denne som vi har samlet inn fra andre nyhetskilder.
Hong Kong records fourth coronavirus-related death - hospital spokeswomanAn 80-year old man became the fourth patient in Hong Kong to die due to the coro...
Les mer »
Turns Out, Pets Can Carry Coronavirus, But You Shouldn't WorryAfter a Hong Kong Pomeranian tested positive for COVID-19, a veterinarian explains if dogs and cats can contract or spread coronavirus or get sick from it.
Les mer »
US should give citizens $1,000 a month to limit coronavirus impact on economy, strategist saysThe U.S. should follow Hong Kong's lead and give a cash handout to its citizens amid the coronavirus pandemic, a strategist told CNBC Friday.
Les mer »
Trump preparing to invoke emergency powers over coronavirusUS president to address media as House Speaker Pelosi and the Trump administration labour to finish a coronavirus aid package
Les mer »
Is coronavirus really like the flu and for how long am I contagious?We speak to Dr Arisina Ma, a physician working on the front line of the epidemic in Hong Kong, and sift through the many mixed messages surrounding the coronavirus pandemic.
Les mer »
'Drop everything, scramble': Singapore's contact trackers fight coronavirusAfter a coronavirus outbreak began to disrupt lives and activity in Singapore la...
Les mer »