HONG KONG: Hong Kong said on Sunday it is shortening the ban on airlines that are found to have carried three or more passengers who test positive for COVID-19 upon arrival, as the number of local cases continues to ease from its peak.
Starting on Friday, the ban on individual airline routes will be halved to seven days as part of an ongoing “flight suspension mechanism,” the government said in a statement.
The change comes after the government said last week a ban on flights from nine countries — Canada, India, Pakistan, Nepal, Britain, the United States, France, Australia and the Philippines — would be lifted on April 1.
If there is at least one positive test and at least one case of non-compliance with pre-departure testing on any single flight, the airline will also be suspended from flying the route for seven days.
Hong Kong reported 8,037 new COVID-19 infections on Sunday and 151 deaths, the second day in a row below 10,000 cases, as its latest wave of infections continues to ease.
The financial hub will relax the social distancing measures in phases starting April 21, allowing restaurant dining after 6 p.m. with tables of four people, up from two currently.
Hong Kong’s economy is set to contract in the first quarter, breaking four quarters of recovery streak, as retail sales fell for the first time in 12 months in February and export growth slowed, Financial Secretary Paul Chan said on his blog.
Businesses and the city’s economy are reeling from widespread closures, as the government has imposed stringent social distancing rules since January amid a dramatic spike in the omicron variant.
While the former British colony has officially stuck to a “dynamic zero” coronavirus policy similar to that of mainland China, which seeks to curb all outbreaks, it has been shifting to mitigation strategies as deaths skyrocketed.
Hong Kong to halve COVID-19 flight-ban penalty to 7 days
https://arab.news/8vqc4
Hong Kong to halve COVID-19 flight-ban penalty to 7 days
- Hong Kong reported 8,037 new COVID-19 infections on Sunday and 151 deaths
- Financial hub will relax the social distancing measures in phases starting April 21
Venezuelan activist Javier Tarazona released from prison as US diplomat assumes post
- Human rights activist Javier Tarazona was arrested in July 2021
- He was released shortly after the arrival in Caracas of US charge d’affaires
CARACAS: Venezuelan human rights activist Javier Tarazona, an ally of opposition leader María Corina Machado, was released from prison after the government promised to free political prisoners in an amnesty bill, rights organizations and family members said Sunday.
Tarazona, the director of the Venezuelan nonprofit human rights group FundaRedes, was arrested in July 2021, after reporting to authorities that he had been harassed by national intelligence officials. Two other activists of the group were also detained at the time.
Venezuela’s Foro Penal, a rights group that monitors the situations of political prisoners in the country, said Sunday that 317 people jailed for political reasons had been released as of noon local time Sunday, and 700 others were still waiting to be freed.
“After 1675 days, four years and seven months, this wishful day has arrived. My brother Javier Tarazona is free,” José Rafael Tarazona Sánchez wrote on X. “Freedom for one is hope for all.”
Tarazona was released shortly after the arrival in Caracas of US Charge d’Affaires Laura Dogu, who will reopen the American diplomatic mission after seven years of severed ties. It comes after US President Donald Trump ordered a military action that removed the South American country’s former President Nicolás Maduro from office and brought him to trial in the US
Dogu, who was previously ambassador in Nicaragua and Honduras, arrived in Venezuela one day after the country’s interim president, Delcy Rodríguez, announced an amnesty bill to release political prisoners. That move was one of the key demands of the Venezuelan opposition.
Venezuela’s government had accused Tarazona of terrorism, betraying the nation and hate speech, all frequent accusations it makes against real or potential opposition members. Tarazona was vocal against illegal armed groups on the country’s border with Colombia and their alleged connection to high-ranked members of the Maduro administration.
Amnesty International reported that Tarazona’s health has deteriorated due to lack of medical attention during his time in prison.
“All of Venezuela admires you and respects your bravery and your commitment,” Machado said on X. “You, better than anyone, know that there will be justice in Venezuela. Freedom for all political prisoners.”
Venezuela’s government denies it jails members of the opposition and accuses them of conspiring to bring it down.
