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Manila Bulletin devider World devider Hong Kong mulls temporary ban on all foreigners; PH domestic workers highly affected

Hong Kong mulls temporary ban on all foreigners; PH domestic workers highly affected

Published Apr 15, 2021 11:13 am

Hong Kong is mulling the possible temporary closure of its border to prevent the entry of an emerging coronavirus disease (COVID-19) variant from outside the country.

An elderly lady wears a face mask while standing next to a barrier along Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong(Photo by Anthony WALLACE / AFP FILE)

In a report by the South China Morning Post, Health Minister Professor Sophia Chan Siu-chee announced that all airlines would be banned from operating routes from a given country to Hong Kong for two weeks should any of them bring in the N501Y coronavirus mutation over a seven-day period.

The government said the ban was prompted after the new COVID-19 strain has been detected in at least five passengers.

Hong Kong on Wednesday confirmed that five new cases of the new variant were detected in the country. One case of which is a local infection involving a 70-year-old man who tested positive after his death. Two of the imported cases from Pakistan carried the N501Y variant, the SCMP reported.

The government identified the variant N501Y as the mutation that would prompt a ban on all inbound flights from the country where the cases came from.

The new COVID-19 variant, which was first detected in Britain, Brazil, and South Africa, has started to spread across the globe.

At least 16 people arriving from the Philippines recently tested positive which is about a quarter of the 61 imported cases. The other 10 infections came from Indonesia. India had the most, with 17, while 12 came from Pakistan.

All the cases from the Philippines carried the N501Y mutation. The variant was also found in 10 cases from Pakistan, four from India, and one from Indonesia.

Domestic workers from the Philippine are among those who face the greatest risk of a temporary ban as they could be in short supply, according to data reviewed by the Post.

The report said salaries for locally hired foreign domestic helpers could be pushed up as much as 30 per cent amid keen demand should a flight ban be imposed.

Employment agencies added that the new flight ban mechanism aimed at keeping an emerging coronavirus variant out of Hong Kong makes it harder for workers to reach the city.

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