BEIJING (AP) – Efforts to dissuade the Chinese from traveling for the Lunar New Year appeared to be working, as Beijing’s main train station was quiet and estimates of total passengers were lower than in previous years.
Thursday began the travel spree about two weeks before the holiday that falls this year on February 12, a time when trains and other types of transport are often crowded with migrant workers taking what may be their only chance every year to travel home and see family.
At Beijing station, only about five of the 15 security gates were open and the usual lines at the ticket windows and passengers camped in the central square could not be seen.
Failure to restrict travel prior to the Lunar New Year travel period last year was blamed for the spread of the coronavirus, especially since the central city of Wuhan, where the first groups of the disease were detected, is an important travel center that was used by millions of passengers.
This year, the authorities offered free reimbursement for airline tickets and extra payment for workers who remain in place to deter holiday travel.
Travelers are expected to have a negative virus test within seven days of departure, and many local governments are requesting quarantines and other strict measures for travelers.
Authorities are predicting that the Chinese will make 1.7 billion trips during the race. This represents a 40% drop compared to 2019. In some destinations, the drops may be much greater, with exits from Beijing and the metropolis of Chengdu in the southwest, falling by more than 75% in the period, according to estimates travel associations.
International arrivals are similarly affected, with virtually all foreigners barred from entering China.
Meanwhile, a World Health Organization The team came out of quarantine in Wuhan on Thursday to begin fieldwork on a mission to investigate the origins of the virus.
The researchers were required to complete 14 quarantine days after arriving in China. Their mission has become politically charged, while China seeks to avoid blame for alleged errors in its initial response to the outbreak.
The National Health Commission reported on Thursday 41 new cases of local transmission of the virus, a drop from previous days. China reported 4,636 COVID-19 deaths out of 89,326 total cases.
In other developments in the Asia-Pacific region:
– The top Philippine diplomat said on Thursday that he will be quarantined and the entire Foreign Affairs Office in Manila will be closed for five days after some officials tested positive for COVID-19. Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. said the test was negative for the coronavirus, but was exposed on Wednesday to people who were infected. “We will be blocked until Tuesday, when we will test again,” said Locsin in a tweet, without giving details. The department said in a separate statement that its closure, which begins Friday, could be extended depending on the outcome of a health assessment. The Philippines has almost 520,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, the second highest number in Southeast Asia after Indonesia, and 10,552 deaths. The government is negotiating with seven American, European and Asian companies to purchase 148 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines, with delivery of the first small batches expected next month.
– More than 90 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine for COVID-19 will be produced in Japan by a Japanese pharmaceutical company under a licensing agreement, officials said on Thursday. The production will cover three quarters of the 120 million doses that the British pharmaceutical company has pledged to supply the country, said Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato. “It is very important to establish a vaccine production system in the country,” he said. The licensing agreement is with JCR Pharmaceuticals Co. Japanese officials are struggling to prepare for vaccines to start as early as the end of February. Japan says it has secured enough vaccines for more than its population of 127 million from three suppliers – AstraZeneca, Pfizer Inc. and Moderna Inc. Many believe vaccines are critical for Japan to hold the postponed Olympics this summer. Japan reported 375,607 cases and 5,361 deaths as of Wednesday.
– South Korea will begin administering coronavirus vaccines to frontline medical professionals next month to launch a mass immunization campaign aimed at achieving so-called collective immunity for the population around November. Jeong Eun-kyeong, the country’s leading infectious disease specialist, said the first available doses will go to around 50,000 doctors, nurses and other health professionals involved in treating patients with coronavirus. The next supplies will go to around 750,000 residents and employees of nursing homes and mental institutions, and then to workers in general hospitals, paramedics, contact trackers and quarantine agents, meaning that around 1.3 million people will be vaccinated until the end of March. The aim is to inoculate enough people to obtain collective immunity – the point at which the virus stops spreading – around November, before the new flu season begins, Jeong said. The country is planning to obtain enough vaccines to cover 56 million people through agreements with pharmaceutical companies and the COVAX program, supported by WHO.
– Vietnam reported 82 new cases of COVID-19 in two groups, hours after counting the first new local cases in almost two months. The Ministry of Health said 72 were workers at an electronics company in Hai Duong province. An employee’s infection was confirmed on Thursday after her colleague had the virus when she arrived in Japan several days earlier. The company was closed for disinfection, surrounding communities were closed and more than 3,000 people will be tested. In the neighboring province of Quang Ninh, 10 people tested positive within hours after an employee at Van Don international airport was confirmed to be infected. No connections between the clusters were reported. Vietnam now accounts for more than 1,600 COVID-19 cases with 35 deaths.
– Travelers returning to New Zealand will face stricter rules in quarantined hotels, as health officials investigate how up to three people were infected while staying at Auckland’s Pullman Hotel. People were released before the test was positive and were potentially contagious, but the tests showed no evidence that the virus had spread in the community. New Zealand was able to control the community transmission of the virus. COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said on Thursday that as an interim measure, travelers would need to stay in their hotel rooms in the last days of their mandatory 14-day quarantine, and would also face tighter controls for leave your rooms on other occasions. Health officials believe the three people contracted the virus from another traveler who was returning to the hotel. Meanwhile, Australia has extended its quarantine-free travel suspension from New Zealand for another three days. Australia is requiring New Zealanders to be quarantined for 14 days at hotels upon arrival.