Singapore is again imposing difficult distancing rules after Covid cases increase

Singapore has once again imposed strict measures of social distancing, banning restaurant meals in person and limiting social gatherings to two people following the emergence of new Covid-19 cases.

The restrictions will take effect on Sunday, just weeks before the country hosts the Shangri-La Dialogue, a high-profile annual defense summit that would have been the first major international event in Singapore since the pandemic began last year. .

The measures are also expected to delay the opening of a travel bubble with Hong Kong that would begin on May 26, the second time that efforts to resume flights between Asian financial centers have been delayed.

Singapore has taken an aggressive approach after denouncing 71 cases of local transmission last week, 15 of which are unrelated.

Officials recorded 24 infections on Thursday, a relatively low level by world standards. But the recent increase in cases and the emergence of new clusters follow months of single-digit daily infections with no local transmission.

Authorities have also identified a new cluster of 46 cases at Changi airport that could involve the more easily transmitted coronavirus variant B. 1,617.2 that was first discovered in India. A separate cluster in a Singapore hospital includes this variant.

“We are in a state of intense alert,” Singapore Health Minister Gan Kim Yong said on Friday.

Ong Ye Kung, Minister of Transport, said the increase in cases meant that “it was very likely that Singapore could not meet the resumption criteria” of the travel bubble with Hong Kong.

The new measures will be in place for a month, but will be reviewed in two weeks. Outdoor meetings or home visits will be limited to a maximum of two people and restaurants will only be able to offer takeaway or delivery food. Working from home will also become the default arrangement.

The Shangri-La dialogue attracts military officials, diplomats and leading arms manufacturers and was scheduled to take place in person from 4 June. Among the confirmed attendees is U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.

The think tank of the International Institute for Strategic Studies, which organized the event, said it remained “committed” to holding the conference. “We will quickly review our existing safe management measures in light of today’s announcements to ensure the highest levels of security for all our participants and the general community in Singapore,” he added.

The World Economic Forum had also announced that it would holds its annual meeting in Singapore in August more than at the Swiss ski resort of Davos, as the health crisis subsided in the Asian city.

The World Economic Forum did not respond to requests for comment.

The new restrictions have discouraged some residents who for months enjoyed an appearance of normal life. “It’s a good way to have a closure without calling it a blockade,” said a city-based financial executive.