Thailand extends state of emergency, allows some foreign tourists

BANGKOK – Thailand extended its state of emergency for an additional month on Tuesday to control the spread of the coronavirus, while easing restrictions on foreign entry to gradually reopen its vital tourism industry.

There have been six extensions since the emergency decree was first issued on March 25, as the government seeks to curb national transmission of the virus while avoiding a large-scale lockdown.

Under the decree, people have been urged to stay home and avoid gathering in groups, although protesters have held anti-government rallies calling for more democracy and reform of the monarchy.

International commercial passenger flights have been banned from April 4, but starting Thursday, some groups of foreign travelers and businessmen with special visas will be allowed to enter Thailand, according to the Ministry of Tourism and Sports.

The first of these will be a group of 150 tourists from Guangzhou, China, who will visit the Thai resort island of Phuket on a charter flight on October 8.

After that, two more groups of foreign travelers, from China and Europe, will arrive on October 26 and November 1, respectively.

Thailand has so far reported 3,559 virus cases with 59 deaths. The last case of local transmission was in mid-August.

On Tuesday, 14 new cases of infection were reported. All were imported, including seven Thai soldiers who returned from their UN peacekeeping deployment in South Sudan.