PHNOM PENH: With as much as 66 out of the 115 infected with Covic-19 being imported cases who then went on to infect locals with cluster infections, the government has ordered the mandatory quarantine of all incoming people into Cambodia.
This includes all border entries such as land, water ways, sea ports and airports through which many infected victims have come through.
Some had suppressed their symptoms with self-medication and were later tested positive but after having been in contact with locals. Among the Cambodians infected this way are two drivers, tour guides and a hotel manager.
To eliminate this menace, Prime Minister Hun Sen on Tuesday announced concerted, cohesive and hard measures for all incoming people, whether foreigners or Cambodians to go into mandatory 14 days’ quarantine established at the point of entries in all provinces and cities which such gateways.
“We need to break the vicious contraction cycle of the coronavirus and also minimise its impact in infecting Cambodians so such measures, though harsh, are necessary. These measures are no different than other countries," the Khmer Times on Wednesday quoted him as saying.
“We need to take preventive measures before it becomes a wide spread pandemic like neighbouring countries where infections have run into hundreds or even thousands and deaths,” the premier said.
The first Covid-19 positive case was detected in Sihanoukville on Jan 27 and until March 7, Cambodia had seen no new infections until the arrival of the river cruise vessel Viking Cruise where eight of its passengers were tested positive for Covid-19, some of them towards the end of the quarantine period.
Another even bigger cluster infection was amongst a French tourist group who had entered Cambodia before the country had banned arrivals from France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Iran and the United States.
This group had the biggest cluster infection at 33 and had also infected Cambodians who had attended to them such as a driver, two tour guides and a hotel manager.
Thus, mandatory quarantine on arrival into Cambodia has been introduced to curb this menace.
Cambodian migrant workers, who have been encouraged to stay in Thailand and not attempt to return to Cambodia are also included in this measure and any entry into Cambodia from Thailand will be subjected to quarantine and if numbers are too big, will be sent home and put into self-imposed quarantine.