In just four months, the virus has turned the world upside down, confining half the planet indoors and killing more than 170,000. AFP
President Donald Trump pledged a temporary ban on immigration to the US because of the “invisible enemy” of coronavirus, as the disease sparked angry demonstrations on streets to demand an end to crippling lockdowns.
In just four months, the virus has turned the world upside down, confining half the planet indoors and killing more than 170,000 on its march through virtually every country.
Drastic measures never before seen in peacetime have shredded the global economy, resulting in the extraordinary spectacle of oil prices turning negative as demand evaporates.
World leaders are agonising over when to loosen restrictions, terrified of a second wave but aware their citizens need to work and live amid growing signs of social tension.
Trump, who has encouraged anti-lockdown protests roiling parts of the country, on Monday said he would halt immigration – a theme long popular with his supporters.
“In light of the attack from the Invisible Enemy, as well as the need to protect the jobs of our GREAT American Citizens, I will be signing an Executive Order to temporarily suspend immigration into the United States!” he tweeted.
At least 22 million jobs have been lost in the US since sweeping lockdowns were implemented to slow the spread of the virus, and exasperation is growing in some parts of the country.
Hundreds took part in a “Patriots Rally” in Pennsylvania, one waving a banner proclaiming “Give me liberty or give me death”.
Rose Bayer, 50, said it was “crazy” to shut down the world over a disease she said has a recovery rate of about 98 per cent.
“People will starve, they’ll commit suicide, they’ll lose everything over this. The cure – like Trump said – the cure cannot be worse than the disease,” she said.
Isolated protests are also springing up elsewhere from Russia to France, where demonstrators in a run-down northern Paris suburb clashed with police they accuse of enforcing lockdown rules too harshly.
In hard-hit Europe, several countries are cautiously creeping out from confinement measures, buoyed by mounting signs the worst of the virus may be behind them.
Chancellor Angela Merkel warned that Germany was “still a long way from being out of the woods”, as she allowed smaller shops from florists to fashion stores to reopen.
There were also encouraging signs in other major European countries such as Italy, France and Britain, although authorities warned citizens against letting their guard down.
Ghana became the first African country to lift coronavirus restrictions, sparking a mixed reaction on streets in Accra teeming with citizens after a three-week lockdown.
“It is a huge reprieve. We have a listening government,” hawker Jemima Adwoa Anim said.
“It was like a war situation. We had no money and at the same time couldn’t step out to work to earn some cash,” she added.
But others were furious the restrictions had been lifted so early.
“This is totally ridiculous. How is it possible?” asked 20-year-old student Francis Collison.
Vietnam’s Steering Committee for National Covid-19 Prevention and Control said there were no new cases of coronavirus recorded on Tuesday, reported Viet Nam News.
That makes it five days in succession without any new coronavirus patients.
The total number of cases Covid-19 in Vietnam remains at 268, with 160 coming from overseas and 108 infected among the community.
Speaking at a government meeting in Hanoi on Monday, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said the country could start gradually loosening Covid-19 containment measures.
However, a decree would only be decided on Wednesday, he said while asking for the continued implementation of measures agreed at a previous meeting on April 15.
Phuc warned that risks remained high, so the political system and localities, as well as citizens, must continue following prevention measures, including social distancing, to stem the virus.
Meanwhile, the Indonesian government is set to evaluate the implementation of large-scale social restrictions (PSBB), reported The Jakarta Post.
This, as many non-essential workplaces are still ignoring the policies and requiring their workers to come in for work amid physical distancing requirements needed to curb the further transmission of Covid-19.
In his opening speech during the limited Cabinet meeting on Monday, President Joko ‘Jokowi’ Widodo said: “Today, I ask for a total evaluation of what we have done to handle Covid-19, especially regarding the PSBB, with details of the pluses and minuses so we can make improvements.”
