Hong Kong Disneyland reopens after cases drop
Cinemas, non-contact sports to return as S Africa eases lockdown
HONG KONG: Hong Kong Disneyland has officially reopened after a major drop in Coronavirus cases in the Chinese territory.
Advance reservations will be required and only limited attendance will be allowed at the park, one of the pillars of Hong Kong's crucial tourism industry.
Social distancing measures including avoiding mixing together different families are being implemented in lines, at restaurants, on rides and at shops, while cleaning and disinfecting will be increased. Visitors will have their temperatures checked at the entrance and be required to wear masks at all times inside the park, except when eating and drinking.
Hong Kong, a city of 7.5 million, has recorded just 1,120 cases and four deaths from COVID-19, but the impact on the financial hub's economy that relies heavily on international travel and visitors from China has been severe.
Most visitors from outside the territory are still barred from entering and Disneyland said anyone who has traveled outside Hong Kong within the previous two weeks will be asked to rescheduled their visit. Meanwhile, casinos, theatres, cinemas, salons and noncontact sports will be allowed in South Africa, even as the five-level strategy to fight the COVID-19 pandemic will remain at level-3, President Cyril Ramaphosa has said while announcing further easing of the lockdown in the country.
Ramaphosa said the government has considered the huge economic impact and joblessness the prohibition is causing, especially to women employed in the personal care sector and those employed in the entertainment and hospitality industries.
South Africa in March had implemented the Coronavirus lockdown, including a ban on alcohol and cigarette sales. The government is gradually easing the restrictions. The country is currently on the third of five levels.
In a televised address to the nation on Wednesday to mark the 100th day since the first COVID-19 patient was diagnosed in South Africa, Ramaphosa said the lifting of restrictions would include restaurants for sit down meals, where previously customers could only purchase takeaways. Accredited and licensed accommodation facilities, such as hotels, cinemas, theatres and casinos, hairdressers, beauty salons and other personal care services would be allowed to reopen on a date still to be announced, but with prescribed restrictions on numbers and COVID-19 prevention measures. Conferences and meetings for business purpose, as well as non-contact sports, including tennis, golf, and cricket, will also be permitted under similar conditions, but contact sports will be allowed only for training and modified activities with restricted use of facilities.
“We have taken this decision with due care and seriousness, appreciating the risks associated with each activity and the measures needed to manage those risks. Altogether, these industries employed over 500,000 people before the lockdown. We have had to think about these people and those who depend on them for their
livelihoods,” Ramaphosa said. “Through the easing of the
lockdown we are continuing to balance our overriding objective of saving lives and preserving livelihoods,” he said. Emphasising the impact of the lockdown on women, the president said it has been particularly important for the government to open up personal care services as the industry predominantly employs women.