South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has called on countries to “urgently change” the “unscientific” restrictions on the existence of a new strain of coronavirus.
His comments on Sunday came as the world’s most revolutionary movement – Omicron – continued to spread around the world, with new cases being reported in the Netherlands, Denmark and Australia.
Many countries have not mentioned South Africa and its neighbors since South African scientists this week announced the new species. The World Health Organization (WHO) has designated Omicron as a “critical genus” that could be more contagious than its predecessor.
“We call on all countries that have banned our country and our Southern African countries to change their decisions immediately and promptly,” Ramaphosa said in his first address to the nation since Omicron’s inauguration.
“Prohibition of travel is not known by science,” he said.
“The only thing that the ban on travel can do is to undermine the economies of affected countries and reduce their ability to respond, and recover from the epidemic,” he added.
“These restrictions are unjustified and unfairly discriminate against our country and the countries of southern Africa.”
A sudden landing of aircraft has taken place frustration South Africa’s most important tourist destination, and its reservation is becoming more and more popular following this announcement. The country’s tourism sector has lost $ 10bn of accommodation by 2020 due to a shortage of foreign tourists, and is said to have lost about $ 10m a week.
In an interview from Johannesburg, Fahmida Miller of Al Jazeera said there had been “significant frustration” between government officials and members of the scientific community on the move.
“There is a lot of concern about what these sanctions mean [economically] south africa as a region, especially before the holiday season, when thousands of European tourists are expected, “he said. but instead South Africa is being punished. “
Congratulations to South Africa on informing the United Nations health organization that its laboratory has identified the Omicron brand, Matshidiso Moeti, WHO’s chief of staff in Africa, also criticized travel restrictions and called on countries to adhere to international science and health regulations. . such measures.
“Travel restrictions could help reduce the spread of COVID-19 but put a heavy burden on lives and lives,” Moeti said in a statement. “Once the restrictions are in place, they should not be disruptive or confusing, and should be scientifically established, according to the International Health Regulations, which is a tool for binding international laws adopted by more than 190 countries.”
Shabir Madhi, a South African vaccine specialist, told Al Jazeera that it was “absurd” for countries to “believe they can stop the spread of the virus and stop southern countries”.
“The virus has already spread to these areas from people who have never been to or met anyone from southern Africa,” he said. “In South Africa, we have one of the best COVID-based products in the world based on our experience in treating HIV and TB. We have been at the forefront of the game for some time and we are suffering for our success.”
While scientists are still evaluating the dangers of Omicron, the WHO said Sunday it was “still unknown” whether the variability spreads easily from person to person, or whether pathogens cause more serious diseases compared to other complications.
“Currently there is no evidence to suggest that the signals associated with Omicron are different from other signals,” the agency said.
Although preliminary evidence suggests that there may be an increased risk of former owners of COVID-19 being re-acquired by Omicron, information is currently limited.
The WHO said the PCR test continues to detect Omicron virus, adding that it is working to understand the potential for a variety of variants, including vaccines.
In his remarks, Ramaphosa called it a “very powerful tool” to reduce its spread by vaccination and urged South Africans to close it.
He said the government is considering making the vaccine legal in some cases and elsewhere in order to increase receiving.
About 35 percent of adults in South Africa have received adequate vaccines because of the slow start of their vaccination campaign and widespread skepticism.
The country is the worst affected by the virus in Africa, with an estimated 2.9 million people and 89,797 deaths.
Omicron believes it is contributing to an increase in the number of cases, with 1,600 new cases reported almost seven days ago compared to 500 last week.
