S’pore shuts schools, Taiwan bars foreigners
New strains like one first detected in India affecting kids
Singapore, May 17: Singapore will close schools from Wednesday as authorities warned new Coronavirus strains such as the one first detected in India were affecting more children. Taiwan also shut schools in the capital Taipei to control an outbreak, and the island banned all foreigners from entry or transit for a month unless they had a residency card.
Both governments have been tightening restrictions to fight a recent rise in cases, after remaining relatively unscathed during the pandemic compared with the rest of the world. Authorities in Singapore said Sunday that primary and secondary schools as well as junior colleges would shift to full home-based learning from Wednesday until the end of the school term on May 28. The announcement came after Singapore confirmed 38 locally transmitted Coronavirus cases, the highest daily count in eight months. Some of the cases involved children linked to a cluster at a tuition centre.
An additional 21 local transmissions were reported Monday. Health Minister Ong Ye Kung, citing a conversation he had with the ministry’s director of medical services Kenneth Mak, said that the B.1.617 strain, first detected in India, “appears to affect children more”.
“Some of these mutations are much more virulent and they seem to attack the younger children,” Education Minister Chan Chun Sing said.
“This is an area of concern for all of us,” he said, adding that none of the infected children was seriously ill. Taiwan's capital Taipei and adjacent New Taipei City announced Monday that schools would suspend classes from Tuesday until May 28. Authorities on Monday also said all foreigners would be barred from entering or transiting Taiwan for the next month unless they had a residency card.