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Letters

May I ask why schools are always the first to close when there are no clusters related to schools (“Hong Kong fourth wave: schools to close until after Christmas holidays as city confirms 115 new Covid-19 cases”, November 29)? While schools with cases of infection should be shut, others should remain open even if the rest of the economy shuts down. Hong Kong should take major cities across the world, such as Toronto, the UK, Seoul and Singapore, as reference points.
Meanwhile, there have been several cases related to gyms – but why are they still open while our children are suffering a lack of proper schooling? Online learning is not a substitute.
Please get our kids back to school as soon as possible.
Jane Ho, Tai Tam


Yes to keeping pupils at home
I am writing in response to the government’s decision to close schools until after the Christmas holidays due to a surge in the number of Covid-19 cases. I support the closure of schools because many teachers and pupils use public transport to get to school, and it is hard to practice social distancing on the MTR or the bus during peak hours. Their daily commute would put teachers and pupils in danger of contracting the coronavirus and exacerbating the fourth wave that we are currently experiencing.
Pupils switching to online learning at home will reduce interactions between them, and thus also help curb the spread of coronavirus.
Desmond Hui, Tseung Kwan O


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Coronavirus pandemic

Hong Kong coronavirus head-scratcher: why are schools closed when gyms remain open?

Pupils’ temperatures are checked via camera as they enter a school in Tai Kok Tsui on May 20. Photo: Nora Tam

Hong Kong fourth wave led by dance studios but bars and nightclubs must shut?

A deserted Lan Kwai Fong nightlife hub in Hong Kong’s Central district on September 15, during two months of coronavirus-related closures. They were allowed to open three days later, only to be named among entertainment venues ordered to shut from November 26 over a renewed wave of Covid-19 linked mainly to dance clubs. Photo: K.Y. Cheng

Travel bubble: what Singapore and Hong Kong’s contrasting reactions to its suspension tell us about our societies

A man looks on as a Singapore Airlines plane approaches for landing at Changi International Airport earlier this year. Photo: AFP

epa08341230 A handout photo made available by the Singapore Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI) of Education Minister Ong Ye Kung speaking during a press conference by the Ministerial Task Force, appointed to tackle the ongoing coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic, in Singapore, 03 April 2020. Singapore has stepped up measures in response to an uptick in cases of the SARS-Cov-2 coronavirus which causes the COVID-19 disease. Home-based learning across all educational institutions will be implemented, and work places will be closed for a month starting on 07 April with the exception of essential services such as healthcare, transport, public utilities, and banking services. Food vendors and restaurants will remain open but restricted to providing take-out and delivery services. EPA-EFE/BETTY CHUA / MCI HANDOUT HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES

.css-sioo19{color:#c79a00;}Letters | Hong Kong coronavirus head-scratcher: why are schools closed when gyms remain open?

Letters | Hong Kong coronavirus head-scratcher: why are schools closed when gyms remain open?