Virus-hit China postpones annual parliament meeting

CHINA decided to postpone its annual parliament session for the first time since the Nineties yesterday as the country continues to battle the coronavirus outbreak.

The National People’s Congress, China’s parliamentary body, meets annually for around 10 days to set key policies for the coming year, and was supposed to begin on March 5.

But most top officials are focused on containing the spread of the virus, which has now reached every province of the country. In a sign of the unpredictable nature of the crisis, no new date has been fixed for the session to begin.

The postponement of the meeting, which went ahead during the severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars) emergency of 2003, could hamper measures by President Xi Jinping’s government to mitigate the economic impact of the epidemic. China yesterday also declared an immediate and “comprehensive” ban on the trade and consumption of wild animals, a practice believed to be at the root of the deadly coronavirus outbreak.

Outside China, South Korea has suffered the highest number of infections, ballooning to more than 830, with eight deaths. More than half of the cases are linked to Shincheonji, a controversial ultrareligious group in Daegu, the fourth largest city.

Thirteen military personnel have been diagnosed with the disease, prompting the lockdown of their barracks, and a US forces family member, with access to the American military base in Daegu, has also tested positive.

At least half a dozen countries have banned the entry of visitors travelling from South Korea, with nine others tightening travel restrictions.