The borders of New Zealand and Australia will be shutting down to the non-residents. This came out from the joint efforts of both countries in order to tackle the coronavirus.
The Prime Minister of New Zealand, Jacinda Ardern, made a few statements this Thursday. She said, “At no time in New Zealand’s history has a power like this been used, and I recognize how extraordinary it is”.
The prime minister further said that “we need to do this for the health of the country and our people.”
The ban in New Zealand began on Thursday midnight. However, for Australia, it started on Friday at 9 pm.
In the case of new Zealand, the ban will be applying to all of the nationalities and countries. However, the ban is not applicable for the children, as well as the partners of the citizen of New Zealand. Moreover, there is an obligation to bringing things in bulk through ships and planes.
The Prime Minister of Australia, Scott Morrison, has suggested the main reason for the spread of coronavirus is because of the people who arrived from overseas.
Moreover, he denied the entry of such people who are non-resident of Australia. The ban applies to the people who are not citizens or have close family members.
“We have been thinking to align arrangements across the Tasman Sea, and I appreciate the consultation that I’ve had with prime minister Jacinda Ardern in dealing with these issues,” he further said.
In both of the countries, there is already a ban for a few weeks on the citizen of china, south Korea, and Iran.
Ardern further said more about this step, “simply removed the risk”. Also witnessing about 28 cases in New Zealand that are because of the arrival of the people from the overseas, Ardern said, “I’m not willing to tolerate risk at our border, that is where predominantly our cases are coming from”.
The foreign minister of New Zealand, Winston Peters on Thursday said: “Do Not Travel”. That follows the elevation of the travel advisories of the countries to the fourth level.
He further said, “This is the first time the New Zealand government has advised New Zealanders against traveling anywhere overseas,” adding “That reflects the seriousness of the situation we are facing with Covid-19.”
In fact, the self-isolation is what both of the countries have announced for two weeks.
Also, both of the governments have banned any of the indoor gatherings that exceed a hundred people. In addition, exemptions for schools, workplaces, public transport, and supermarket have also been done. Besides, not only Australia but also New Zealand banned outdoor gatherings that exceed 500 people; however, schools remain open.
Both of the prime ministers have told the citizen not to panic about buying things from the supermarket. People can normally do shopping as the goods will remain available as the deliveries of goods from overseas continues.
Also Read: SOUTH KOREA AND INCREASE IN THE CORONAVIRUS CASES
