By
The SUN
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| FEHD agents seize cooked food in pots and fresh meatballs peddled in Victoria Park |
Foreign domestic workers spending their days off in their usual hangouts in Central, Causeway Bay and other public places in Hong Kong, will find government teams again enforcing social distancing and other anti-Covid rules this weekend.
This time around, they will be cracking down as well on illegal hawkers, especially those that sell food at migrant workers’ favorite haunts.
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Last Jan. 9, a similar operation resulted in FEHD (Food and Environmental Hygiene Department) officers arresting one person for illegally selling food in a public place near Victoria Park and seized abandoned articles that included fresh and cooked food.
Filipinos who hang out in Central also reported seeing the enforcement teams telling off workers who spread and shared food on the pedestrian underpass linking Chater Road and Edinburgh Place near City Hall.
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Experts have always said that the sharing of food in public gatherings is one of the key routes of virus transmission.
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| Govt agents stepped up the campaign after 3 Indonesian DHs were infected with Omicron |
The government has been making repeated calls for FDHs to help in fighting Covid-19 which spiked this month and left three Indonesian FDHs positive for Covid-19, out of the 171 asymptomatic cases and two re-positive cases recorded since Jan.1.
In a press release today, the FEHD said: “The Government is highly concerned about the latest epidemic situation and strongly appeals to all sectors… including FDHs to fight the virus together.”
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It appealed to FDHs to “raise awareness of epidemic prevention, keep the environment clean and hygienic, and comply with the various anti-epidemic regulations and restrictions, including the requirements on group gatherings and wearing of masks.”
Teams that will roam the FDH gathering places will include not just FEHD and Leisure and Cultural Services Department – the agencies in charge of maintaining these public places -- but also the Hong Kong Police Force, Labour Department, and Immigration Department.
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“The joint operations started today and will continue tomorrow at various public places in Wan Chai, Central and Western, Mong Kok, Yau Tsim, Sha Tin, Tsuen Wan and Sai Kung, near popular FDH gathering public places during weekends and public holidays,” FEHD said.
“During the operations, apart from arranging cleansing contractors to strengthen street cleaning services at the relevant spots, the FEHD also steps up patrols to combat littering and unlicensed hawking activities.”
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“In addition, promotional leaflets in multiple languages are also distributed by the FEHD to appeal to FDHs to maintain environmental hygiene and refrain from conducting unlicensed hawking activities.
“FDHs
are also reminded by other government departments to comply with the
regulations on mask-wearing and prohibition of group gatherings in public
places,” it added.
The statement said that under the The Prevention and Control of Disease (Prohibition on Group Gathering) Regulation (Cap. 599G) and the Prevention and Control of Disease (Wearing of Mask) Regulation (Cap. 599I), violators may each be charged a fixed penalty of $5,000.
