[New Crown Pneumonia] After the partial closure of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, the number of entrants climbed and the quarantine loopholes were not sealed?

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Written by: Zhang Meihua, Ni Qingjiang

2020-03-11 19:47

The epidemic of a new type of coronavirus pneumonia commonly known as "Wuhan pneumonia" has continued. The Hong Kong Government has stipulated from February 8th that if you have been to the Mainland 14 days before entry, you must enforce quarantine at your residence for 14 days. Citizens and tourists enter through the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge from the Macao Port without compulsory quarantine. Entry from the Bridge-Zhuhai Port will certainly receive a quarantine order, but will they be found if they enter Macau first and then return to Hong Kong?

It is reported that anyone who enters from the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge port needs to fill out a health declaration form. Only the staff of the Port Health Department will make oral inquiries to find out whether they have been to the designated areas such as the Mainland and rely on the citizens to answer honestly. Hong Kong citizens use their Hong Kong identity cards when they enter Macau, but there is no notification mechanism between Hong Kong and Macau. In other words, if anyone is dishonest, they can use this loophole to travel to and from the Mainland and avoid mandatory quarantine after entering Hong Kong.

From the figures of the Immigration Department, since February 8, the number of citizens leaving the country via the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge has continued to rise, from less than 1,000 each when the new law came into effect, to 6,000 each at the beginning of this month. It is unknown how many of them are going to Zhuhai and returning to Hong Kong from Zhuhai. However, as of Tuesday (10th), the Department of Health had 24,000 mandatory quarantine, which was only about 1,000 different from the number of people entering through the Shenzhen Bay Port during the same period. Count people returning to Hong Kong on Mainland flights.

From February 19 to 20, the number of people entering through the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge increased from more than 1,700 to more than 2,900, and then continued to rise to the recent peak. The number of people who entered the city on a single day reached 7,171. (Profile picture / Photo by Lin Ruoqin)

Hong Kong and Macau have not notified residents of entry and exit information

With the outbreak of the global epidemic, the Hong Kong Government has also recently announced that it has strengthened entry restrictions, including requiring the past 14 days to visit the Mainland, Romagna, Italy, Lombardy or Veneto, Hokkaido, Iran, La Rioja, Spain , Madrid and Basque Country, Burgundy-Francis-Conti, Greater East, France, and North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, and other regions require 14-day compulsory isolation measures upon arrival in Hong Kong, and Non-Hong Kong residents are even more prohibited from entering Korea.

Except for direct entry / exit via mainland flights or ports, whether other immigrants have visited the mainland of China in the past 14 days, the Hong Kong Government cannot tell if passengers have to fill out health declaration forms on their own initiative. It is reported that the DH staff only made oral inquiries at checkpoints to find out whether immigrants have visited the Mainland and other regions. There is no notification mechanism related to travel records between Hong Kong and Macau. In other words, the responsibility of the gatekeeper mainly lies in whether the passenger has truthfully declared a party. Any passenger still has the opportunity to take advantage of entry through the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, creating a loophole in exempting compulsory quarantine.

For example, Hong Kong people first detour to the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge via Macau before entering the Mainland, and then return to Hong Kong along the original road. The Mainland Pass uses the Homecoming Permit to enter and leave Macau, and the Macao Pass uses the Hong Kong Identity Card to enter and exit. Will not be notified to the Hong Kong side.

Hong Kong people entering Macao via the Mainland port need only undergo an eight-hour medical examination. (Profile picture)

Macau casinos reopened on February 20

According to figures from the Immigration Department, the Hong Kong Government has closed most of the ports since February 8, leaving only the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, the airport and the Shenzhen Bay Port for visitors to enter and leave. Taking the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge as an example, the number of immigrants from February 7th to 8th fell from 8,667 to 1,176, a sharp drop of 86.4%. However, after entering Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, the number of immigrants who entered China was "closed". There is a continuous upward trend.

During the period from February 8 to February 19, the number of immigrants remained mostly at 2,000 daily, and on February 14 it exceeded the 2,000-pass mark once, reaching 2,049. However, since Macau ’s casino reopened on February 20, the number of immigration and immigration has soared. From February 21, the number of immigration and entry has remained at 4,000. By the end of February, the number of immigration and entry has risen to more than 5,600 and to 3 On 6th, the peak number of single-day arrivals after the "seal" was recorded, reaching 7,171 arrivals in Hong Kong.

▼ More than 80,000 people infected with pneumonia in Wuhan have not been transmitted from person to person ▼

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Hong Kong people entering Macau with only 8 hours of medical examination

According to Macao regulations, visitors who have arrived in areas with a high incidence of new crown pneumonia within 14 days before entering the country (including Hong Kong visitors), as long as they enter Macau from the mainland gate, they need to be sent to the Variety Museum or Workers ’Stadium for an eight-hour medical examination. Hong Kong visitors entering the Macau Bridge will not be affected.

As for Macao residents, if they make irregular trips to and from the Mainland multiple times a day, they also need to undergo an eight-hour medical examination. All foreign employees in Macao, from the 20th of last month, have been in the Mainland within 14 days before entry, and need to be quarantined at the place designated by the Macau Health Bureau for 14 days in order to enter the country.

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Wuhan Pneumonia New Crown Pneumonia Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Immigration Department-Macau Outbreak (Wuhan Pneumonia) Macau