PUBLIC HAS RIGHT TO KNOW DETAILS
EVEN after this newspaper published his picture on its front page, there has been little sympathy for the so-called “covidiot” who escaped Hobart hotel quarantine. Firstly the man entered the state when he wasn’t supposed to, then secondly he visited two residences in Bridgewater.
He was not co-operative with authorities and also clearly refused to wear a mask when he was transported from the Travelodge to Fountainside on Wednesday afternoon. There is absolutely no excuse for his reckless actions.
He has received a $3100 fine, which given the potential ramifications of his rule-breaking, could be letting him off far too easily. At the same time, we’ve seen two AFL grand final border breachers given jail sentences for travelling from Victoria to Western Australia to watch the Demons’ victory.
More than 50 people have been forced into quarantine after being deemed close or casual contacts and the Bridgewater community is understandably concerned that there could be further spread. Authorities have acted quickly to track and trace anyone who might need to quarantine and the government has also worked hard to get information out to Tasmanians.
Premier Peter Gutwein is right when he says there is no need to panic. We should be prepared for this.
If we have been identified as a close contact, we know we need to stay home. If we have any cold-like symptoms, we know we need to take a coronavirus test and, if we haven’t already, we absolutely know we must urgently get vaccinated.
The government has done a good job of quickly organising press conferences and making authorities available to answer questions. It’s just the refusal to answer fairly basic questions that can really grate.
Authorities were already out in force in Bridgewater on Wednesday, yet Tasmanian Director of Public Health doctor Mark Veitch refused to be more specific than saying the case was in the “northern suburbs” leaving more people than necessary anxious.
Dr Veitch also wouldn’t say if the man was vaccinated or not, where he was from and what exactly he was doing here. All of that information is in the public interest and we’ve seen it released under similar circumstances in other states.
While we understand it takes time to gather certain information, at times, Public Health ties itself in knots trying to protect the identity of individuals when the greater good surely should be getting more detailed information to the public.
Whatever the outcome of this individual’s recklessness the fault should lie squarely with him for clearly flouting the rules. However, if the government wants us to stay calm, it needs to be reassured information is not being held back needlessly.