TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Philippines to bar travel from Malaysia, Thailand to curb Delta's spread
The travel restriction will take effect from Sunday and run to the end of July, presidential spokesman Harry Roque said in a national address.
Change Size
Philippines’ President Rodrigo Duterte gestures during a press conference at Malacanang Palace in Manila on November 19, 2019. (AFP/TED ALJIBE)
T
he Philippines will suspend travel from Malaysia and Thailand, as well as tighten restrictions in the Manila area, in a bid to prevent the spread of the contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus, the presidential spokesperson said on Friday.
The travel restriction will take effect from Sunday and run to the end of July, presidential spokesman Harry Roque said in a national address.
Read also: Philippines tightens curbs after first local Delta variant cases
"This action is undertaken to prevent the further spread and community transmission of COVID-19 variants in the Philippines," Roque said.
The Philippines has previously banned travellers from eight countries including Indonesia and India.
To try and prevent further domestic transmission of the Delta variant, President Rodrigo Duterte has placed the capital region, an urban sprawl of 16 cities that is home to more than 13 million people, and four provinces under stricter coronavirus curbs until the end of July.
Indoor sports and conference venues, indoor tourist attractions and gyms are not allowed to do business, while the operating capacity of indoor and al fresco dining has been cut.
In addition, children between the ages of five and 17 will not be allowed to leave their homes.
The Philippines has recorded 47 cases of the Delta variant, eight of which are active, and three deaths.
With nearly 1.54 million infections and nearly 27,000 deaths, the Philippines has the second-highest number of coronavirus cases and casualties in Southeast Asia, next to Indonesia.
The Philippines reported 6,845 additional cases on Friday, the highest daily increase in four weeks, the health ministry said.
Read also: Thailand expands lockdown areas as COVID-19 cases surge
