BANGKOK, Jul 31 (NNN-TNA) – Thailand’s plan to reopen the country in mid Oct is going ahead, despite a surge in COVID-19 infections, Thai Deputy Prime Minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, said.
“The plan is still there. We’ve been trying every way to clean up our country, though the virus is still around. We hope in the coming few months we can welcome our old friends,” said Anutin, who is also the public health minister.
“The Phuket Sandbox carries on. It’s a sandbox, so it’s well contained,” said Anutin.
The Phuket Sandbox refers to the campaign to reopen the resort island of Phuket to vaccinated foreign visitors.
There have been calls for the suspension of the campaign, although the tourism industry remains a lifeline for many Thais.
To curb the spread of infections, Phuket will ban travel from the rest of the country to the resort island, from Aug 3 to 16, but overseas visitors will not be banned.
The deputy prime minister said, the authorities are well prepared and confident to solve the problems that could occur in the Phuket Sandbox campaign.
The campaign was launched on Jul 1, allowing fully vaccinated tourists to move freely on the island, with no quarantine upon arrival.
“When I was in Phuket, almost all the people I met proudly told me they were vaccinated. It creates confidence. I would like to see things like that happen around the country. It will come soon,” said Anutin.
The deputy prime minister urged the Thai people to take vaccines as soon as possible. “Regardless of any reason, having vaccines is far better than not.”
Yesterday, Thailand reported 17,345 new cases and 117 additional fatalities, raising the total number of infections to 578,375, and the cumulative fatalities to 4,679.– NNN-TNA
