《TAIPEI TIMES》 Ninth day of no new virus cases

INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION: The CECC said that on Friday evening, it held an online forum on COVID-19 prevention and control with officials from 13 countries

By Lee I-chia / Staff reporter

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The Central Epidemic Command Center （CECC） yesterday reported no new COVID-19 cases for the ninth consecutive day, adding that a total of 389 infected people had been released from isolation after being treated.

At the CECC’s daily news conference, Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung （陳時中）, who heads the center, joked that Taiwanese hit singer “Jolin [Tsai, 蔡依林] is here today” — a word play on the Chinese homophones for “nine zeros.”

He said Centers for Disease Control （CDC） Deputy Director-General Chuang Jen-hsiang （莊人祥）, the CECC’s spokesperson, had told him the joke earlier in the day, and that he was at first surprised and asked if the pop diva had really come.

“It has been nine straight days without new cases, so there will be more and more happy elements in our lives,” he said, smiling.

On Friday evening, the CECC held an online forum to discuss COVID-19 prevention and control strategies with officials from 13 countries, including the US and Japan, Chen said.

There were more participating officials, of higher rank, than during bilateral meetings held with friendly countries on the sidelines of the annual World Health Assembly （WHA） in Geneva, Switzerland, in the past few years, he said.

“They were very interested in the COVID-19 prevention measures taken in Taiwan, as well as the outcomes,” he said.

“I believe the experience we have gained recently will become a disease prevention model,” Chen said. “We represent how a free and democratic country, with high cooperation from the people, can achieve a better disease prevention model.”

As the forum was focused on COVID-19 control measures, the CECC reported on when certain measures were implemented and its goals, he said, adding that the foreign officials expressed their support for Taiwan to take part in the WHA.

Chen was asked to comment on the Ministry of Transportation and Communications’ three-stage plan to gradually relax transportation and tourism restrictions that was published on Friday.

The first stage is to partially relax public transportation rules from May 27 to July 31, the second is to promote safe tourism and ease more public transportation rules from Aug. 1 to Oct. 31, and the third is to gradually ease border controls and promote international tourism from Oct. 1 to Dec. 31.

The plan includes allowing passengers using the Taiwan Railways Administration and Taiwan High Speed Rail train services to eat and drink on trains and put on a mask after finishing their meal, starting on June 1, and removing the mandatory mask-wearing and body temperature measurement policies from Aug. 1.

Chen said the ministry is making advance preparations, but actual implementation of the policies would be based on the COVID-19 situation, and that personal protection measures should not be relaxed any time soon.

People should still practice social distancing, wear a mask if a proper distance cannot be kept and stay at home to rest if they feel ill or have a chronic disease, he said.

As for easing the quarantine regulations for foreign nationals traveling to Taiwan for business, specialists agree that priority for relaxing border controls should be given according to the disease situation in the country the foreign national is from, as well as how important economic and trade activities with the country are, Chen said.

The CECC would discuss the issue with the Ministry of Economic Affairs, he said, adding that they are considering allowing foreign businesspeople without symptoms to be put under quarantine for five days upon arrival, and testing them for COVID-19 before allowing them to conduct business for two to three days while performing self-health management.

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES