China orders release of Covid detainees ahead of scrapping travel restrictions
The Hindu
Hundreds of people have been arrested in the last three years for resisting the lockdowns of their apartments and dragging of people out of their flats to take them to quarantine centres.
The Chinese government on Saturday ordered the release of people detained over a host of coronavirus-related incidents, a day ahead of Beijing’s plan to scrap its three-year-old stringently implemented zero-Covid policy.
China will end its international isolation from 12 a.m. on Sunday, fully opening its airports and ports for travel and trade, amid a massive coronavirus outbreak in the country.
International travellers can arrive in China without nucleic acid tests and quarantine restrictions once the restrictions are gone.
The complete scrapping of the travel rules comes at a time China is grappling with a sudden spurt in coronavirus infections fuelled by the Omicron variants after the government relaxed its stringent zero-Covid policy last month in the wake of a wave of anti-government protests.
Officials argue that the Omicron variant is not as lethal as the Delta strain, which caused massive casualties all over the world.
Also, ahead of the complete relaxation of Covid rules, the Chinese government on Saturday ordered the release of the people detained for Covid-related cases.
A government notice said that any property that had been seized should be released, while quarantine and control measures at the state borders will also no longer be criminalised.
With a new government in place in Delhi, Singapore hopes to schedule the Ministerial Roundtable with India shortly, says Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan. In an exclusive interview, he speaks about the impact of the elections on ties, the “missed opportunity” of RCEP and the new buzz around Andhra Pradesh’s capital Amaravati.