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© Thomson Reuters 2023.New Zealand won't require travelers from China to show COVID-19 test
By Lucy Craymer WELLINGTON©2025 GPlusMedia Inc.
39 Comments
Kobe White Bar Owner
Bad call, potential political suicide too.
master
when even the radical NZ govt admits any and all measures have been a miserable failure, you know its over.
They'll never admit it, but its a surrender.
Its over.
Bobo
Good decision, it’s an endemic and will circulate the world regardless, unless the don’t let anyone out of China! and that isn’t going to happen of course. So fly to nz then onwards.
Anonymous
A bold about face for Jacinda. Something received from China,
master
Can you boys explain where in the world any of these disastrous measures proved a success?
(And no, New Zealand doesn't qualify after its predictable summer of leading the world in new cases, hospitalizations and deaths per capita this past summer)
master
political survival for a career politician is a great motivator
Elvis is here
Obviously, it buys time and allows countries to make preparations.
Clearly, it won't stop an eventual spread but allows experts to get a handle on the situation.
Undoubtedly, If CCP were to help out, countries would not feel that restrictions are necessary
Sal Affist
It's too late. The carriers have already arrived and are spreading it in all the tourist venues. So if it's too late, why bother closing the barn door now? Instead, start preparing for the next wave of cases throughout your country.
elephant200
NZ labour party always a good friend to China!
JBird
Endemic?? COVID has already spread around the world and has been pandemic for over two years. Perhaps you missed that memo?
Fighto!
Terrible decision. This will be very unpopular and will likely finish Ardern - who is already very much on the nose.
It's not unreasonable to request a covid test be done for travellers coming from a hotspot. Considering most Chinese have (crazily) not been vaxxed, who wants Chinese tourists filling up limited hospital resources?
BTW - for those morons who suggest a testing requirement is "discriminatory" against Chinese - why are THEY requiring PCR tests for foreigners entering China?
commanteer
Not really. Follow the money.
master
so New Zealand bought time so that they could have the world's worst cases, hospitalizations and deaths per capita a little later. I see.
No, actually I don't see...
NOMINATION
lol and a couple years ago, posters on here were calling New Zealand a way better country than Japan for their draconian measures while Japanese people were trying to live their lives as usual. What's up now as the Covid love gets spread around NZ?
geronimo2006
I don't think this is in any way politically motivated. Chinese travellers are unlikely to have any variants that NZ does not already have. Hence low risk. US travellers pose a bigger risk with XBB.1.5.
Nippori Nick
Compare death rate from COVID in USA vs Canada which had stricter measures. Add to that the USA likes to tout their health care--didn't help.
theFu
How much is China funding NZ today? As said above, follow the money.
What is Taiwan doing? That's the real question. They know mainland China best.
Seems that Taiwan will be doing their own testing, on arrival, since they know not to trust mainlanders. Don't want to be tested, don't arrive from Mainland China.
kaimycahl
Waiting to see the number rise in NZ and the New Zealand government taking heat from its citizens!
2020hindsights
Master
Yes. New Zealand.
Deaths per million:
USA = 3,342
Canada = 1,275
NZ = 728
Elvis is here
you see and then you don't? Which is it?
Ah_so
I thought it would be obvious - so that everyone could get the vaccine, which as has been soundly demonstrated, reduces the mortality rate materially.
Ah_so
Which means that if NZ had had the USA's mortality rate, an additional 13,400 New Zealanders would have died.
Or to put it another way, if the US had adopted NZ's strategy, 878,000 Americans would still be alive.
(I note that a number of both populations would have died of other causes had COVID not occurred so these numbers are likely to be exaggerated by 10-20% as a guesstimate).
master
and right on cue, the question is ignored with a meaningless stat that ignores the wild obesity rates in the US and the fact that hospitals had great financial incentive to label any and all deaths covid deaths. To the tune of $5000 or so for every death.
But since you failed to show a single example of where border measures worked, Ill take that as the answer we all already know.
Zip.
master
yes, New Zealanders are fat, but not on a par with the US.
But more importantly, you ignored once again the greater point of the financial incentives for US hospitals to label every sickness and death as covid.
New Zealand led the world in cases, hospitalizations and deaths in July-August of last year.
They lifted border restrictions in September.
(You thought you could slip that misinformation in and no one would notice!)
master
so again; can anyone show me a country where travel/border restrictions succeeded?
Anywhere?
Anyone?
Anyone?..
Anyone?..........
2020hindsights
master
Which is irrelevant, unless you can prove that hospitals unethically labeled sicknesses as covid. There is no evidence of this, and if you look at the excess deaths stat, no reason to believe that this occurred.
They had 75 hospitalisations per 100,000 in a month. Nowhere close to the US's peak hospitalisations of 183 hospitalisations per 100,000 in a month.
Yes. New Zealand.
master
Border restrictions were eased in or before February 2022.
For a very few and very select business travelers.
You selectively omitted this gem from the same story thinking readers would miss it.
Will.
As in future tense.
As in had been in place up until September
Still waiting for that magical land where border restrictions proved even a little bit effective...
Anyone?..
Anyone?...
Bueller?...
Anyone?..........
master
Are you saying this didn't happen?
2020hindsights
master
Which is irrelevant, unless you can prove that hospitals unethically labeled sicknesses as covid. There is no evidence of this, and if you look at the excess deaths stat, no reason to believe that this occurred.
Yes, of course it didn't happen. Excess death data suggests that, if anything, Covid deaths were undercounted.
master
excess, non-covid deaths were or are up 10-15% in every highly vaccinated country
But you knew that.
I'm curious. Why did the New Zealand govt end the travel restrictions if they were working so well?
Why would they willingly and suddenly allow its citizens to be infected and die?
No one seems to be able to answer this question.
I'm confused....
2020hindsights
master
Yes, of course it didn't happen. Excess death data suggests that, if anything, Covid deaths were undercounted.
Yes, which proves that the US weren't overcounting.
The travel restrictions worked extremely well, because New Zealand had eliminated covid.
After the first lockdown, for about a year and a half, there were no covid cases in New Zealand. People could move about without masks and mingle in crowds without the possibility of getting covid.
During this time vaccines were rolled out and people got vaccinated.
When Delta came, after an initial attempt at elimination through lockdowns in Auckland, the health authorities realised elimination would be close to impossible, so lockdown restrictions were ended. And then Omicron hit which proved even more contagious. If you aren't pursuing an elimination strategy, border restrictions are generally meaningless. So border restrictions were gradually ended.
master
LOL!
and there it is!
2020hindsights
master
The travel restrictions worked extremely well, because New Zealand had eliminated covid
Being one of the few countries to eliminate covid has many advantages, but requires travel restrictions.