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Japan shuts borders as world races to stem new Covid variant

The Philippines also said it would temporarily suspend plans to allow fully vaccinated tourists.

JAPAN TODAY ANNOUNCED plans to bar all new foreign travellers over the Omicron variant of Covid-19, joining a growing list of countries trying to erect virtual fortresses against the heavily mutated new strain.

G7 health ministers are set to meet later in the day to discuss the new strain — first detected in South Africa — and the fresh challenge it poses to global efforts to battle the pandemic.

The Japanese government has become the latest country to reinstate strict border controls that many had hoped would be a thing of the past, barring all new foreign arrivals just weeks after announcing it would finally allow some visa holders to enter the country.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said the country was “in a stronger position against the Omicron variant than other countries,” citing voluntary mask-wearing and self-restraints about risk behaviours.

The Philippines also said it would temporarily suspend plans to allow fully vaccinated tourists entry, in a bid to prevent the variant taking off in a country where most of the population remains unvaccinated.

Manila had hoped to revive the country’s battered economy by allowing jabbed tourists entry as of Wednesday.

The variant is also throwing a tentative opening-up into doubt in Australia, where the government is now reconsidering plans to relax border restrictions further in just two days.

But with three Omicron cases confirmed in people flying into Australia from southern Africa -– two landing in Sydney and one in the northern city of Darwin — Prime Minister Scott Morrison appeared reluctant to re-impose the kinds of strict lockdowns seen earlier this year.

“We don’t just need to learn to live alongside Covid, we need to learn to live alongside the variants as well,” he said.

© – AFP, 2021

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    Mute Munster1
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    Nov 29th 2021, 8:20 AM

    If the vaccines dont work well against this variant then limiting its spread will be a smart move.

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    Mute Handsome McWonderful
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    Nov 29th 2021, 8:48 AM

    @Munster1: If it’s a weaker variant then just leave it take over. That’s how Spanish Flu played out.

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    Mute Mjhint
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    Nov 29th 2021, 12:45 PM

    @Handsome McWonderful: very true but the covid virus has not fully followed that path. Any new variant has turned out to be more problematic on some level than the previous one. The Spanish flu did as you claim. The variant actually got weaker but it still took a few years to get rid of so hopefully these variants will become less problematic.

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    Mute Elaine Phelan
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    Nov 29th 2021, 6:56 PM

    @Handsome McWonderful: if it is proven to be weaker, that will be great news and your strategy makes sense. But it’s too early to tell for sure, so it’s better to be cautious

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    Mute Valentine Kane
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    Nov 29th 2021, 7:08 AM

    A sledgehammer to crack a nut,

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    Mute WiseUp
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    Nov 29th 2021, 7:12 AM

    @Valentine Kane: Perhaps, but the truth is right now nobody knows the severity of this new strain or what the best way of reacting is. Scientists need to figure out the resistance to vaccines and confirm the level of transmission. Being cautious is a very understandable reaction and it’s a global reaction. Unless you know something the rest of us don’t ??

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    Mute Homes
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    Nov 29th 2021, 7:12 AM

    @Valentine Kane: best approach to be honest. Snooze and loose.

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    Mute Neil Neart
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    Nov 29th 2021, 7:56 AM

    @WiseUp: yes be cautious, but also be cautious with the messages delivered to an already frazzled population. The relentless negativity, doom and gloom is pushing some over the edge and driving others to disbelief and protest. There’s nothing we can do to stop a virus spreading worldwide and to pretend we can is disingenuous.

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    Mute Larry Rawson
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    Nov 29th 2021, 8:22 AM

    @Homes: Lose

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    Mute WiseUp
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    Nov 29th 2021, 9:16 AM

    @Neil Neart: Did you mean to type “there’s nothing we can do to stop it spreading worldwide” or was it an accident ?? I’m struggling to comprehend your thinking or logic. Do you think restricting global movement or travel from a known virus hotspot until the scientists know what their dealing with is a sensible approach?? I know it’s already spread and the chances are that we’ll get a confirmed case in Ireland over the next few days but a trickle is obviously easier to trace and try and manage and figure out an appropriate response than a full on flood of infections. This is just common sense surely ??

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    Mute Ciarán O' Donoghue
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    Nov 29th 2021, 7:48 AM

    It’s already in your country, too late.

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    Mute Ajax Penumbra
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    Nov 29th 2021, 7:52 AM

    @Ciarán O’ Donoghue: Agreed. You can be guaranteed it’s already in most countries, including Ireland. Closing borders will do nothing.

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    Mute Dave Hammond
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    Nov 29th 2021, 9:04 AM

    They dont have enough info on the new variant and where is the journalists asking any tough questions or reporting some of the experts who are saying the info so far is not that serious??

    As example Latest reports from Israel

    Prof. Dror Mevorach, head of the coronavirus department at Hadassah University Hospital Ein Karem, said the preliminary reports on the clinical condition of people infected with the new variant are encouraging. “If it continues this way, this might be a relatively mild illness compared to the delta variant, and paradoxically, if it takes over, it will lead to lower infection rates,” and it will be easier to deal with globally.

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    Mute Jim Buckley Barrett
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    Nov 29th 2021, 10:28 AM

    @Dave Hammond: I’ve heard a couple of interviews with experts, simply saying that they didn’t know enough yet. Seems its the reporters hyping it up. Hopefully Mevorach is right

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    Mute Gavin Conran
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    Nov 29th 2021, 10:57 AM

    @Jim Buckley Barrett: Exactly this.

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    Mute Elaine Phelan
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    Nov 29th 2021, 7:14 PM

    @Dave Hammond: prof. Dror Mevorach also said “It’s still early to say, but not everything that looks bad is really bad. At this point it’s important to collect information, not speculations,”

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    Mute Rob Gale
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    Nov 29th 2021, 9:38 AM

    They have experience going back a long time in how to deal with these things. They’re right to do this, stop westerners marauding around the place with no masks bleating about their rights and “it’s only a flu”, when they all have self discipline and respect for each other’s health.

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    Mute Charles Mander
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    Nov 29th 2021, 10:58 AM

    @Rob Gale: the Japanese have been almost searching for opportunities to remain isolated. You’d be surprised at the sheer % of this naturally conservative population who are applauding today’s decision, and wish to see it last longer than the month it is planned. 外人は危ないだよ

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    Mute Robert Clifford
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    Nov 29th 2021, 10:39 AM

    I haven’t been this excited since Y2K.

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    Mute Declan Gowran
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    Nov 29th 2021, 11:02 AM

    Genuine question, How do we know all of the latest or past infections in the past number of weeks are not this variant ? Where are we tracking what variant each person has been or is infected with currently ? Are our pcr tests that dynamic to detect a different variant if new or different?

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    Mute MrJohne
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    Nov 29th 2021, 9:45 AM

    if this spreads more and gets into china..with their zero policy.. it could mean more china shutdowns and hence supply issues globally

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