Latest update April 24th, 2024 12:59 AM
Oct 18, 2014 News
– As Foreign Affairs Minister says persons can be refused entry
With keen attention being paid to averting the threat of the Ebola virus, a high level Ministry of Health team yesterday descended on the Ogle International Airport with the intent of putting in place safeguarding measures.
The team, led by Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Shamdeo Persaud, included Director of Veterinary Public Health and International Health Regulations Focal Point, Dr. Colin James; Director of Communicable Diseases, Dr. Morris Edwards, and Dr. Mariano Bonet of the Pan American Health Organisation.
Together they were able to spearhead a full Ebola preparedness prevention awareness and training meeting, with senior personnel of the airport’s management and airline operators and handling agents.
The urgent implementation for the training and equipping of airline check-in staff, including security personnel, airport handling companies, Immigration and Customs officers, aircraft cleaning companies and cleaners and airport taxi drivers, was reviewed at the meeting.
However, according to a statement issued yesterday, the Ogle Airport, even prior to the implementation of the country’s emergency programme to address the international spread of the Ebola virus, has had in place standard operating procedures for the observation and evaluation administered by the Port Health Authority of international passengers who may be infected with communicable diseases. There were earlier reports that no measures were in place at the Ogle Airport to deal with the Ebola Virus.
But, according to the statement, “all passengers on regular international flights arriving from Barbados and Suriname, and domestic flights from Lethem, on the Brazilian border, are already being screened with regard to their original points of origin and are now being monitored for symptoms of the Ebola virus as well as other communicable diseases.”
During the visit of the Health team yesterday, efforts were made to examine facilities for quarantining passengers demonstrating symptoms of infection and identified a suitable area for isolating aircraft that may have been carrying an infected passenger.
Currently, efforts are also being made to put in place portable thermo-scanning equipment at Ogle Airport, a feature that is reportedly already in place at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport.
Already Guyana, like some other Caribbean territories, has put restriction measures in place to tackle the Ebola virus. The restriction particularly targets citizens and visitors from West Africa where the outbreak of the virus was first detected earlier this year.
In a post publicized on her Facebook Page, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, noted that Government, since early September discussed Guyana’s preparedness to deal with Ebola.
Moreover, she noted that “on September 9, 2014, all Embassies and Consulates abroad, have been instructed by me not to issue visas to nationals from West African countries for the time being. The Embassies and Consulates have not issued any visas since then,” she added.
But according to Rodrigues-Birkett, while this does not constitute a travel ban for persons from African countries (Africa has 54 countries), the measure implemented is aimed at dealing with the deadly Ebola virus which is seen as a challenge to both developed and developing countries alike.
In yet another post, the Minister noted that “in relation to the steps taken with respect to fighting Ebola, I have been asked about the effectiveness of not issuing visas at our Missions abroad when a person can be issued with a visa on arrival in Guyana. To allay your fears, let me make it very clear that a person cannot just board an aircraft and arrive in Guyana where a visa will be automatically issued.”
According to her, “in order to be issued with a visa on arrival, the passenger must have a letter from the Ministry of Home Affairs that the visa will be issued on arrival. Even so, the visa can be refused if immigration has enough reason to so do.”
Moreover, the Minister noted that as far as she has been advised, airlines must follow the international Travel Information Manual which does not allow for a person to board an aircraft without a visa (where one is required) or a document indicating that one will be issued on arrival.
She disclosed too that “our recent advisory to the Airlines operating in Guyana also indicated that even if a letter is presented (assuming it was issued before the Ebola outbreak), that such persons coming from the identified countries will not be granted a visa.”
She nevertheless noted that Guyana will continue to welcome all law abiding citizens, even as she pointed out that “we want to make travel to Guyana hassle free.” According to the Minister, the visa on arrival policy was put in place to facilitate the growing number of visitors, especially those from countries where Guyana has no Embassies or Consulates.
“Needless to say we are now operating in difficult circumstances, where we have no choice but to put certain measures in place, albeit temporarily, to protect our population,” said the Foreign Affairs Minister.
Meanwhile, Guyana has provided US$50,000 in response to the United Nation’s World Health Organisation’s appeal to combat Ebola. Guyana was one of 130 co-sponsors of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 2177 (2014), and one of 50 plus states that intervened in the meeting on September 18, 2014.
The UNSC had stressed the crucial and immediate need for a coordinated international response to the Ebola outbreak and called on Member States to provide urgent resources and assistance to support the affected countries in intensifying preventive and response activities.
In his address to the 69th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, President Donald Ramotar said “we currently face a stark reminder of how fragile global welfare is in the face of singular threats such as the Ebola epidemic. Make no mistake; this is a global problem that requires an immediate global response many times over what is currently being done.”
According Rodrigues-Birkett, “in our growing tradition of responding to humanitarian and special causes, and in demonstrating our solidarity with the people of West Africa, the Government of Guyana will make a modest financial contribution of US$50,000 in response to the international appeal for aid, even as we work to prepare our own country to fight this dreaded disease.”
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