South Korea begins Covid-19 testing for people arriving from China

South Korea has started Covid-19 testing for arrivals from China at Incheon International Airport.

Under the new restrictions which came into effect from Monday, all arrivals from China are obliged to undergo a PCR test within the first day of their entry, Yonhap news agency reported.

They must also remain in separate facilities here until their test results are confirmed, while South Korean nationals and foreigners with residency status returning here from visiting China have to quarantine at their residence after a PCR test.

As of 5 p.m., 13 people coming from China had tested positive for Covid-19, according to health authorities. All of them were asymptomatic.

Beginning Monday morning, Incheon airport authorities handed out red name tags to all short-term visitors from China to identify them from travellers from other countries.

Soldiers wearing blue protective clothing then escorted them to the PCR testing centre located at Terminal 1. As there was no separated route for them, some travellers arriving from Singapore were mistakenly given the red name tags after standing in wrong lines.

Foreigners who underwent the PCR test were asked to stay in a waiting room on the first floor of the nearby Transportation Center until their test results came out. The centre where benches and simple refreshments are prepared can accommodate about 300 people at the same time.

Government authorities, including Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency Commissioner Jee Young-mee, conducted an on-site inspection of how the new measure was being carried out.

The officials visited areas designated for travelers taking PCR tests and waiting for the results and inspected anti-virus measures at the scene, according to Han's office.

A Chinese national who was waiting for her friend arriving from China complained that it is frustrating to have to wait at the airport for more than six hours on Monday. She also said her friend was significantly inconvenienced by the suspended issuance of short-term visas for Chinese nationals.

A Beijing-based South Korean employee of a South Korean company who landed at Incheon airport Monday morning voiced dissatisfaction at the sudden quarantine policy change, saying his business trip schedule in Seoul has been messed up, as he has to quarantine after a PCR test.

"The tougher restrictions may be necessary due to serious Covid-19 situations in China, but it is regrettable that the (South Korean) government has not given prior notice sufficiently in advance," the employee said.

--IANS

int/sha