Not Nationwide Shutdown: When Arriving Westerners Pose a Greater Threat than Wuhan

 Not Nationwide Shutdown: When Arriving Westerners Pose a Greater Threat than Wuhan 

United Daily News Editorial (Taipei, Taiwan)

March 19, 2020

 Translation of an Excerpt

In a short number of days, Taiwan suddenly increased over 50 cross-border confirmed cases of COVID-19; the government first added over 60 countries in Europe and Asia as Level 3 alert, and yesterday again announced that it would ban starting today the entry of all non-citizens, with the exception of diplomats and businessmen who had received special permits, adding that all arrivals would be subject to home quarantine for 14 days. Just as the new coronavirus pneumonia epidemic started to spread everywhere in the world, this thundering approach was of course an indispensible means, otherwise Taiwan's performance in its first wave of epidemic prevention would probably be destroyed overnight.

In the latest development, currently Western countries have lost control of the epidemic situation, with risks far exceeding China, even Hubei. Take Wuhan for instance, on the 17^th there was only one new confirmed case. Under such circumstances, are several hundred of our countrymen who have been stranded in Wuhan for two months still not allowed to return home?

The entry control for epidemic prevention ought to be adjusted anytime depending on actual needs; in fact, there is no need to call it "a nationwide shutdown", because its objective is to prevent and halt the spread of the epidemic situation in order to ensure the health of our countrymen.

Attachment : none