The Marina Bay Sands beyond Merlion Park in the central business district of Singapore. (BLOOMBERG)
MELBOURNE – Singapore said only fully-vaccinated people and those who had recently recovered from the coronavirus will be allowed to enter workplaces from January, while those who haven’t taken the shots must test negative daily before they are granted access.
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"Unvaccinated employees will not be allowed to return to the workplace unless they have tested negative for COVID-19 before returning to the workplace, and they will need to pay for the costs of these tests," the government said in a statement on Saturday. The testing requirements will also apply to people who are medically-ineligible to take the vaccines and pregnant women, it said.
Those who have recovered from COVID-19 within the past 270 days are part of the group allowed entry.
People dine outdoors in Degraves Street in Melbourne, Oct 22, 2021. (DANIEL POCKETT / AAP IMAGE VIA AP)
Australia
Melbourne, Australia's second-biggest city, began its first weekend out of the world's longest string of COVID-19 lockdowns with spontaneous street parties, live music and packed pubs, bars and restaurants.
Home to about five million people, Melbourne endured 262 days, or nearly nine months, of restrictions during six lockdowns since March 2020, longer than the 234-day continuous lockdown in Buenos Aires.
Home to about five million people, Melbourne endured 262 days, or nearly nine months, of restrictions during six lockdowns since March 2020, longer than the 234-day continuous lockdown in Buenos Aires
Despite rain on Saturday morning, people queued for barbers and breakfast restaurants, all of which are open only to the fully vaccinated.
Late on Friday, people broke into a spontaneous street party in Melbourne's southeast and many rejoiced with their first drink in months in a pub with friends, social media footage showed.
Although the Delta outbreak continues to spread, with 1,750 new cases and nine deaths reported on Saturday in Victoria state, of which Melbourne is the capital, the ease in restrictions came the state's full-vaccination rate reached 70 percent.
While most retail outlets remained closed, authorities said further easing will come once 80 percent of Victorians are fully inoculated, estimated by next weekend.
"Let's not slack off, let's increase the pace as we get to the 80 percnet milestone – but also the 90 percent vaccination milestone," Jeroen Weimar, Victoria's COVID-19 response commander, said on Saturday.
While small but violent anti-vaccinations protests have taken place in Melbourne and other cities this year, Australians overwhelmingly support vaccinations, with polls showing the percentage decisively opposed in single digits.
Nearly 72 percent of adults in Australia are now fully vaccinated and nearly 87 percent have received one shot. According to a national strategy, lockdowns will be unlikely once 80 percent of Australians are fully inoculated.
Sydney, Australia's largest city, celebrated its reopening two weeks ago, after reaching the vaccination threshold of 70 percent. On Saturday, New South Wales state, of which Sydney is the capital, recorded 332 COVID-19 cases and two deaths.
People visit a pop-up vaccination site, Oct 19, 2021, in suburban Auckland, New Zealand. (MICHAEL CRAIG / NEW ZEALAND HERALD VIA AP)
New Zealand
New Zealand reported 104 new coronavirus infections on Saturday, including the first community case of the virus in the country's South Island in nearly a year, health officials said.
Most of the new infections were reported in Auckland, New Zealand's largest city that has been under a strict lockdown for more than two months. Looser restrictions are in place in most of the rest of the country of 5 million.
The risks of a further spread from the case reported in Blenheim, in the north east of the South Island, remained low, health officials said, with the person likely in the late stage of infection
The risks of a further spread from the case reported in Blenheim, in the north east of the South Island, remained low, health officials said, with the person likely in the late stage of infection.
"So far, initial case interviews have identified a small number of close contacts, who have been contacted and are currently isolating with tests arranged," the health ministry said in a statement.
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On Friday, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said that New Zealand will end its strict lockdown measures and restore more freedoms only when 90 percent of its eligible population is fully vaccinated. As of Saturday, 70 percent of those eligible were fully inoculated.
The number of cases in the current outbreak reached 2,492 and New Zealand has recorded 28 coronavirus-related deaths so far in the pandemic.
People wait to receive the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine at a vaccination site in the Seodaemun district of Seoul, South Korea, July 14, 2021. (SEONGJOON / BLOOMBERG)
South Korea
South Korea has reached its goal of fully vaccinating more than 70 percent of its population against the coronavirus, a precondition the government set for an easing of restrictions.
About 35.9 million of the nation’s 51.3 million residents had been fully vaccinated as of 2 pm local time Saturday, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said in a statement.
The government had targeted a 70 percent vaccination rate for it to ease anti-virus restrictions, the statement said.
Asia Business Daily reported earlier that the government may begin easing rules from around Nov 9, after it has fully vaccinated 70 percent of the population.
South Korea is considering lifting restrictions on operating hours for restaurants and coffee shops from early next month, a health ministry official said Friday, adding that a detailed plan will be announced on Oct 29.