Australia was an example of coronavirus control, now it’s coming back to strict quarantine: what happened?

Some 10 million Australians, nearly half of the population, will have to serve a new lockdown in several cities across the country, which is fighting an increase in coronavirus infections. Long ago, the nation believed itself to be virtually free from the pandemic. What happened?

After the inhabitants of Sydney (to the south-east), Darwin (to the north) and Perth (to the west), those of Brisbane (to the east) and several parts of the state of Queensland will have to stay at home in from Tuesday evening, for at least three days. .

For a few weeks Australia, with some 25 million inhabitants, praised for its response to the pandemic, faces an outbreak of cases, especially of the Delta variant, very contagious.

Many attribute it to flaws in quarantine systems for travelers arriving from abroad.

“These are tough decisions. There are blockages in the big cities because the virus is coming in with arrivals from abroad,” said Annastacia Palaszczuk, Premier of Queensland.

“We are not just fighting an epidemic, we are focusing on a number and more information has emerged today. We are now dealing with multiple scenarios and it is time for us to act and act quickly,” he warned.

In addition to Brisbane, several areas of the Queensland coast, and in particular the small town of Townsville (north), are affected by this new quarantine. Outings are only permitted for essential activities.

The measure was taken due to a relapse of the case after an unvaccinated health worker traveled to Queensland for ten days while infected.

The Perthians also have forbidden to leave the house under the start this Tuesday of a four-day lockdown

Only three positive cases have been detected recently in this large western city, which has long been extremely cautious in the event of an epidemic.

The Delta variant, a “new beast”

“We know the risks posed by covid and looking at the world we know that the Delta variant is a new beast that we cannot risk ourselves with,” West Australian Prime Minister Mark McGowan said during a press conference Monday evening.

These confinements take place in Full school and tourist vacations could result in many cancellations, since unaffected states recommend their residents not to visit those in which cases have been recorded.

New Zealand, meanwhile, has announced that it will partially reopen its “bubble” for travel with Australia from July 5, only to states that have not recorded cases.

Australia is facing cases of the highly contagious Delta variant, which has emerged in India.

Slow vaccination

The Conservative government was criticized for the slowness of the vaccination campaign and the lack of improvements in quarantine systems.

Under pressure, the Australian Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, announced that vaccination would be compulsory for staff in elderly care facilities and quarantine centers.

In addition, his new Deputy Prime Minister, Barnaby Joyce, has just been fine of 200 Australian dollars (126 euros, 150 dollars) after being sighted without a mask while paying for gasoline at a gas station on Monday morning.

The government is also being criticized for not making public the number of Australians who are fully vaccinated.

Some 7.4 million doses have been administered. But some media claim that less than 5% of the 25 million Australians received both doses.

The current main outbreak remains in Sydney, where 150 people have been infected since a driver working for airline crews tested positive in mid-June.

The largest city in the country entered Sunday in a two-week confinement.

Since the start of the pandemic, Australia has recorded just over 30,000 cases, including 910 fatalities.

Source: AFP

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