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SINGAPORE (THE NEW DOCUMENT) – Two groups, each of 20 people or more, are under investigation for allegedly violating safe distancing rules in Singapore’s nature reserves.
One involved 26 hikers who had tried to go off the trail illegally in the Central Catchment Nature Reserve, the largest on the island.
The other was a group of 20 people who had come together for a birthday celebration at the Labrador Nature Reserve in southwest Singapore.
More concerning is that these two groups are not the only ones being investigated for a possible violation of Covid-19 security measures, they are not even the largest group.
The Ministry of Sustainability and Environment (MSE) revealed on Thursday (November 13) that it is also investigating a group of 50 people. The New Paper understands that this is the largest group linked to a violation since safe distancing measures were implemented in March.
Responding to inquiries from TNP, an MSE spokesperson said that these incidents are among a series of recent cases involving 12 to 50 people intermingled in large groups in various parks, birthday celebrations, baby showers, food outlets. and drinks, and basketball and soccer games in Housing. Board of succession court.
These cases are under investigation and appropriate enforcement actions will be taken, he added.
Noting the recent increase in these types of meetings, the spokesperson added: “It is important that we all remain vigilant and adhere to safe distancing measures to avoid a resurgence of cases as has been seen in other countries.
“We have been able to keep the number of Covid-19 cases low because most play their part.
“With the holiday season coming, and as we transition to phase three, it is even more crucial for us to adhere to these measures in order to continue to keep our community safe.”
In the current phase two of the reopening of the country, social gatherings of up to five people are allowed with security measures such as the use of masks.
The government has indicated that the country could move to phase three by the end of the year.
But Education Minister Lawrence Wong, who co-chairs the Covid-19 multi-ministerial task force, reiterated on Tuesday (Nov 10) that three criteria must be met for this to happen.
Two of them are sufficient testing capabilities, where Singapore is “doing well”, and a 70% participation rate in the TraceTogether program, up from the current rate of less than 50%.
The third is a general sense of compliance with safe management measures.
“We need Singaporeans to take today’s measures seriously because if the people are not even responsible enough to defend them, then going for further relaxation will be very risky,” Wong emphasized.
Separately, on Tuesday, Sustainability and Environment Minister Grace Fu said on Facebook: “I am concerned to see an increasing number of flagrant violations of the rules. I urge you to continue to observe measures to keep your family and friends away. safe from infection. “
Infectious disease experts cautioned that this was not the time for complacency despite the decline in community cases.
With reciprocal green lanes established between Singapore and countries like Malaysia and Japan and the looming air travel bubble with Hong Kong, an undetected case of the virus could creep in, said Dr. Leong Hoe Nam, a specialist at Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital.
“Our defense of masks and social distancing must be maintained. Otherwise, we will see a new wave of community spread,” he added.
“I would encourage everyone not to give up on the tremendous achievements we have made.”
Another expert, Dr. Ling Li Min, who is also based in Mount Elizabeth Novena, said that the recent spike in violations suggests that people may be suffering from fatigue from Covid-19 measures.
However, he stressed the importance of remaining socially responsible, as studies have shown that gathering in large groups in close proximity results in an estimated secondary infection rate of up to 53 percent if someone in the group has the virus. .
“Getting to where we are now with our low community infection rates has been challenging, and we have seen from the experiences of other countries how easy it is for a new group of infections to form,” he added.
“Let’s not be tempted to lower our guard now.”
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