Letters | Just scrapping hotel quarantine is still not enough to bring travellers to Hong Kong
- Readers discuss the possible shift from a ‘3+4’ to ‘0+7’ quarantine scheme and plans to review safety policies after a tree fell onto a school bus
While of course a “0+7” scheme may help to address the expat exodus and is good for residents generally (compared to three days in a quarantine hotel followed by four days of self-monitoring presently), it does not address the fundamental problem that tourists and business travellers will not come to Hong Kong in any significant numbers if they can’t go to a restaurant or enter a pub immediately upon arrival.
Why doesn’t the government understand that until Hong Kong gets in line with the rest of the world and does away with all restrictions on inbound travellers – including scrapping the mask mandate – the city will only continue its slow death spiral?
Yes, a reopening is likely to lead to a small uptick in Covid-19 cases. But certainly this is something Asia’s World City can handle. The rest of the world has been able to.
If the government is really determined to put Hong Kong on the path to recovery, it needs to embrace the “Big Bang” and remove all restrictions on incoming travellers.
Ted Osborn, Mid-Levels