Metro Manila, 4 provinces back to lockdown starting Monday

By The SUN 

The curfew will be extended from 6pm to 5am (Rappler photo)

The Philippine government will put Metro Manila and its four neighboring provinces of Cavite, Laguna, Bulacan and Rizal back under “enhanced community quarantine”, a virtual lockdown, starting Monday, Mar 29.

The strictest quarantine restrictions were recommended by the government’s anti-epidemic task force and approved by President Rodrigo Duterte earlier today, according to a statement released by Malacanang.

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The ECQ, which will last until Apr 4, is a throwback to the early days of the pandemic in the Philippines, when much of the country was locked down because of the rapid spread of the coronavirus.

The situation is even direr now, with daily coronavirus infections rising to record highs. Today’s daily tally of 9,595 is just slightly lower than yesterday’s all-time record of 9,838 cases.

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The number of active infections is also at a record high of 118,122 cases, or 16.6% of the total tally of 712,442.

All public transportation will continue to operate, but with limited capacity

Under the ECQ that will take place from Monday, the following will be observed:

·         All public transportation will continue to run, subject to such capacity and guidelines to be issued by the Department of Transportation.  

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·         Construction projects will also go ahead, subject to guidelines from the Department of Public Works and Highways.

·         A longer curfew from 6 p.m. to 5 a.m. will also be in place, while restaurant dine-is will be prohibited.

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·         Public gatherings of more than 10 people, as well as religious gatherings, are also not allowed.

·         Local government units will set up centers that will find, trace and isolate suspected Covid-19 cases

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·         Municipality or city-scale lockdowns will be implemented in other areas such as the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) and Calabarzon and Region 3, especially Zambales

·         Implementation of simultaneous vaccination of frontline health workers and senior citizens, with a substitution list that will include those with co-morbities

It's not clear if people will be asked to show quarantine passes when they go out

In his briefing about the ECQ, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque did not, however, give any categorical answer to the question of whether quarantine passes will still be needed to go out. He suggested that people can simply explain to authorities why they are outside of their homes.

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He also did not respond fully to questions on whether aid will be forthcoming for those who will be adversely affected by the shutdown.

Roque said the government was forced to abandon its previous policy of not reverting to ECQ again as data showed that the healthcare system in the region has reached critical level.

He said declaring the lockdown during Holy Week makes sense as it will give the healthcare system a break, while there will be limited impact on the economy because of the long holiday from Holy Thursday to Easter Sunday.

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HK posts 6 imported infections, no local case

By The SUN 

The 6 imported cases included 3 with the N501Y variant: 2 from Phl and 1 from Pakistan

For the first time in more than four months, no local cases of Covid-19 infection was recorded in Hong Kong.

But six imported cases were reported, including three with the more infectious coronavirus strain.

They include two Filipino domestic workers, a 44 year-old male and 25-year-old female, who both arrived on Mar 25 and tested positive at Hong Kong airport. They both flew in aboard a Cebu Pacific flight 5J272.

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The third is a 45-year-old male who came from Pakistan via Emirates flight EK384. He flew in on the same day, and tested positive on arrival.

Two of the other confirmed cases were returning residents from India who also arrived on Mar 25. One is a 32-year-old male and the other, a 34-year-old female. They flew in aboard UK 6392.

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The sixth case involves a 36-year-old female domestic helper from Indonesia who arrived on Mar 14 and tested positive on her 12^th day in hotel quarantine.

The surge in infected travelers coming in from the Philippines and India recently led to Cathay Pacific Airways flights from Manila and Air India’s flights from New Delhi being banned for two weeks recently.

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Both airlines flew in with five passengers who tested positive at the airport, despite being required to show a negative test result for a Covid-19 test taken within 72 hours before their flights.

Hong Kong University microbiologist Yuen Kwok-yung said in talks with reporters earlier today that he hoped the city is close to achieving zero infections. But he warned that people must not let their guards down.

Yuen says HK should have no local cases in 14 days to achieve zero infection 

“I think Hong Kong has finally reached a stage where we have a chance of achieving zero casaes and I hope it will remain that way,” Yuen said, adding that people should get vaccinated as soon as possible.

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He warned against an early relaxation of social distancing measures, saying Hong Kong would have no more local cases if it could achieve zero cases in 14 days.

Yuen spoke after visiting GO24 Fitness in North Point, where the patient in yesterday’s sole case with unknown source, had visited regularly.

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He said the chance of a major outbreak like the one that swept Ursus Fitness in Sai Ying Pun earlier this month was low, as the North Point gym had more fresh air and was equipped with two air purifiers.

However the operator has been asked to make improvements in the air circulation.

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Four staff and 20 customers of the gym were sent to quarantine centers, along with seven people who lived in the same subdivided flat in Caueway Bay as the patient, a 38-year-old Japanese flight attendant.

About 500 people who visited by the gym at the same time as the patient have been asked to take a virus test.

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A peek in the life of those quarantined at Penny's Bay

Jason Cacayorin, Rochelle Borja and their daughter about to leave Penny's Bay

How is it like to stay in a Hong Kong quarantine centre after being classified as a close contact of a person who tested positive for Covid-19?

Those who are taken to the government-run centers are made to stay there for 14 days while being checked and tested to make sure they are not themselves infected, and will unknowingly spread the coronavirus in the community.

For the first time, the Hong Kong government has given the public a peek into the Penny’s Bay Quarantine Centre in Lantau, the biggest of its isolation centers for close contacts of confirmed Covid-19 patients.

The video shared on the government’s website, along with an accompanying article, show the inside of the rooms in the center, and how those quarantined are looked after, including how much food and provisions are provided them during their two-week stay

The video also feature interviews with those who had stayed at the center, including a Filipino family of three.

The government released the video in the wake of allegations that it has been taking a high-handed approach in dealing with people about to be quarantined, especially those with young children.

Apart from Penny’s Bay the government also uses as quarantine centers the Lei Yue Mun Park and Holiday Village, Silka Hotel Tsuen Wan at Dorsett Hotel Kwun Tong.

Here is the link to the video and the accompanying story:

https://www.news.gov.hk/eng/2021/03/20210325/20210325_155344_046.html?type=feature

The transcript of the accompanying story:

SERVING CONFINEES HEART AND SOUL

Claire Frost and her two sons were glad to be outdoors again after staying at Penny’s Bay Quarantine Centre for 14 days.

They were close contacts of a COVID-19 patient involved in the URSUS Fitness cluster.

Mrs Frost said government staff tended to her family’s needs during their stay at the facility.

“I think the Government did a good job.

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“All the basic necessities were catered for - the three meals a day. If we needed extra toiletries we just rang them and they turned up quickly and all that, there was fruit provided. So it was perfectly sufficient.”

Rochelle Borja and Jayson Cacayorin, who stayed at the centre with their daughter, also checked out on the same day. They praised their accommodation.

Ms Borja said: “I don't know about the other rooms, but our room was very nice and very safe. They gave us fruits, and for the kid, they brought her LEGO toy for her to play.”

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“We are happy because we had accommodation like this. If it is in other countries, I think it is not like this,” Mr Cacayorin added.

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The quarantine centre located on Lantau Island has 3,500 units. It is managed by the Civil Aid Service, and the Department of Health is responsible for the facility’s medical services.

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Daily necessities such as beds, meals and private toilets are provided to those quarantined.

Confinees can even message a WhatsApp hotline to request items ranging from phone charging cables to mini fridges, and even lip balm.

Civil Aid Service Senior Operations & Training Officer Queenie Yung explained the most popular items that have been requested are cup noodles, snacks and drinks.

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“If there are over 1,000 confinees in the quarantine centre, maybe there will be 700 calls received every day,” she said.

To make the quarantine experience more family-friendly, she pointed out that those who are under quarantine can request baby cribs, milk powder and bottle sterilisers, along with toys and coloured pencils.

She added that the furniture in barrier-free access rooms, such as tables and beds, have rounded edges.

The Government will also ensure that bigger families can be quarantined together.

“If there’s a family, then the family members will be put into the same quarantine facility,” Centre for Health Protection Quarantine Centre Task Force Commander Chan Kwok-kee said.

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“Depending on the family size, we have some facilities at the quarantine centre at Lei Yue Mun Park & Holiday Village that can accommodate up to eight people. Even with big families, we can allocate facilities to them.”

Peace of mind

Apart from physical needs, the Government is also fully aware that people who have been removed from the comfort of their own homes and placed in quarantine will most likely be anxious.

Department of Health Senior Medical & Health Officer Dr Kong Che-wan said many of the confinees do not have a clear idea of what will happen once they enter the facility.

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“They have tremendous concerns about their health status, in particular related to COVID-19.

“So for most of the patients of the cases, we would like to see them and talk to them. We would introduce them to the surveillance programme to make sure they know what is exactly happening, the collection of the deep throat saliva specimen - how we do that, when we would do that - and then we will let them know the result later on in order to be able to reassure them about their health status.”

Dr Kong said the department’s staff stationed at Penny’s Bay will call those under quarantine daily to monitor their health.

A team of nurses, nutritionists, physiotherapists and optometrists also stand ready to answer their enquiries.

Ms Borja and Mr Cacayorin recalled that the daily calls they received had given them peace of mind.

“They always checked our body temperature to ensure we were in good health and also they always called us to ask if we felt something, some symptoms. They always asked us for updates,” said Ms Borja.

Mr Cacayorin added: “We stayed here for 14 days but we didn’t see any problems and we didn’t feel nervous. 

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Justice elusive for family of Filipina who fell to death in Shenzhen

By Vir B. Lumicao 

Lorain's death renewed calls to stop employers bringing their helpers across the border

Nearly four years after Filipina domestic helper Lorain Asuncion fell to her death in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen, her family’s search for justice has gone nowhere, as her employers cannot be found.

Only a little money may be in store for her relatives, after an insurance company from which the employers had taken cover for the 28-year-old worker agreed on mediation to settle claims filed as a result of her death.

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This was disclosed today, Mar 26, by a lawyer representing the family of Asuncion, whose badly injured body was found in a flower bed outside a building at the Vanke No.5 Garden residential estate in Shenzhen on July 24, 2017.

Three autopsies conducted on her remains concluded that there was no foul play involved, indicating suicide.

Evelyn Tsao, a partner at Patricia Ho & Associates law office in Wanchai, said Asuncion’s Chinese male employer Gu Huaiyi is no longer at his contractual address at 10B, One Silversea, Tai Kok Tsui, Kowloon and at his known addresses on the mainland.

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Tsao was assigned by human rights lawyer Patricia Ho as the solicitor in charge of the civil claims filed on behalf of Asuncion’s family at the District Court.

Tsao says an insurer has agreed to mediation to settle the claim

Tsao said Blue Cross Insurance HK, the insurer, is agreeable to mediation. She said the law firm had plans to seek compensation from the Employees Compensation Assistance Fund Board but before they could go to the Fund Board, the insurer said it would defend the proceedings. Just very recently Blue Cross suggested mediation because they are inclined to settle the case, Taso said.

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This was the same reason given by the Hong Kong Labour Department when it declined to investigate Asuncion's death.

Tsao said she could not say yet how much how the settlement would amount to, as the parties have yet to agree on a date for mediation.

Earlier, Ho said that the case was moving towards mediation, with a still undetermined amount to be paid to Asuncion’s beneficiaries to settle the claim.

She said the money would likely come from the Employees Compensation Assistance Fund, which covers payments relating to work-related injuries or death which a court may rule as payable by employers, as well as legal costs.

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“But there would be no justice for Lorain as her employers cannot be found to take responsibility for her death,” she lamented.

Ho laments that justice won't be served Lorain until her employers are found

Asuncion’s sister Jenevieve A. Javier echoed Ho’s sentiment. She said in a message to The SUN that the employer should have at least appeared in court to show good faith, instead of fleeing from his responsibility.

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On July 23 last year, the third anniversary of Asuncion’s death, the District Court issued summons to Gu in his last known address at One Silversea, after he ignored several notices for hearings. But he never responded.

Gu, then 47 years old, was arrested by the police shortly after Asuncion’s death in 2017, along with his  32-year-old wife surnamed Liu. But they were later released, with the police citing “lack of evidence” to support a charge against them.

(For more insight into this case, please read: https://www.sunwebhk.com/search?q=lorain

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Record 9,838 infections push up Philippines' active Covid-19 cases to 109k

By The SUN 

Philippines' record daily tally today (CNN graphic)

A second consecutive record tally of 9,838 infections was recorded in the Philippines today, Mar 26, bringing the total number of Covid-19 cases to 702,856. Yesterday’s daily toll of 8,773 was also a record.

Of the total tally, the number of active cases was also at a new high of 109,018, or 15.5% of the total.

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Recoveries for the day numbered 663, pushing the total to 580,689 (82.6% of all cases).

Fifty-four new fatalities were recorded, which raised the death toll to 13,419 (1.87%).

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Most, or around 50% of the new cases, were recorded in the National Capital Region. Quezon City tops the list of cities with the most number of active cases, at about 7,800.

Amid the continuing surge in cases, the Department of Health said it was facing a shortage of drugs used to Covid-19 patients. Occupancy rates for isolation beds in Metro Manila are at a critical level, so hospital are being asked to increase their allocation for Covid-19 patients.

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However, the National Task Force for the coronavirus eased an earlier ban on church gatherings in the NCR Plus bubble (including Cavite, Laguna, Rizal and Bulacan) by allowing up to 10% capacity in churches from Apr 1 to 4.

The government will also allow 24 tertiary education institutions to conduct limited face-to-face classes in the second semester of the current academic year.

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Meanwhile the controversy over certain people being allowed to jump the queue for vaccines currently reserved for medical frontliners. The DOH said only health workers are allowed to be included in the “substitution list” which the Paranaque city government used to justify giving the jab to actor Mark Anthony Fernandez.

Nearly 500k OFWs have returned home after losing their jobs, says OWWA

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III told lawmakers that he will push for overseas Filipino workers to be moved up in the inoculation priority list by six spots.

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He made his statement as OWWA Administrator Hans Cacdac revealed that about 492,000 OFWs have been repatriated since the start of the pandemic last year. Of these, 450,000 reportedly received the Php10,000 “Akap” relief fund for OFWs affected by Covid-19.

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