The state tightens its restrictions on the borders

The New Zealand announced the strengthening of restrictive border measures, as new cases of
COVID-19 They have been recorded in areas of the archipelago that have survived until now. “We are introducing a requirement that airline passengers aged 17 or over, who are not New Zealand citizens, be fully vaccinated to enter New Zealand,” said Christ Hepkins, COVID-19 Minister.

Air New Zealand also announced the entry into force of a measure banning access to its international flights for all unvaccinated passengers from February 1. So far, New Zealand has succeeded in containing the Covid-19 epidemic on its soil with strict border measures and closures. Since the beginning of the epidemic, the archipelago of 5 million people has recorded only 27 deaths.

Demonstration against imprisonment

The tightening of restrictions comes as Hamilton and the neighboring town of Raglan, located on the North Island, were ordered to shut down for five days, after two people tested positive for the coronavirus. These new cases are said to be unrelated to those in Auckland, New Zealand’s largest city, located 160 kilometers away. This city of two million people has been under lockdown for nearly seven weeks due to an epidemic concentration that is now 1,320 people.

About 2,000 people demonstrated this weekend in Auckland against the lockdown. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern He described the protest as a “real slap in the face” for those who complied with the restrictions on gatherings. “It was illegal and immoral,” she said. New Zealand has adopted a “zero COVID” strategy. No cases of infection had been detected in the population for the six months prior to the one that erupted in August.