World News – AU – Asia Today: Seoul Tighten Virus Rules, Closing Nightclubs

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – South Korea is imposing stricter social distancing rules in the greater Seoul area to combat the coronavirus resurgence. The country registered more than 300 new cases for the fifth consecutive year.

Health Minister Park Neung-hoo said Sunday that authorities have found 62 clusters of viruses in the past two weeks. He said the tightened distancing guidelines in the Seoul area will be enforced for two weeks from Tuesday.

The rules require nightclubs and other high-risk entertainment venues to be closed, and late-night dining in restaurants is prohibited. Customers are not allowed to drink or eat in cafes, internet cafes or fitness centers, while the audience is limited to 10% of the stadium’s capacity at sports events.

South Korea reported 330 new coronavirus cases on Sunday, bringing its total to 30. 733, including 505 deaths.

– According to the Japanese Ministry of Health, the daily list of confirmed coronavirus cases reached 2 on Sunday. 508 set a record for the fourth day in a row. Japan has less than 2. 000 coronavirus-related deaths recorded to avoid number of hardest-hit nations. But fears of a further increase are growing. A spate of criticism from opposition lawmakers and the general public has criticized the government for stopping too slowly its « GoTo » tourism campaign, which encouraged travel and food with discounts. Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga canceled the campaign on Saturday, but only after many people had already made travel reservations for a three-day Thanksgiving weekend in Japan. Airports and restaurants were packed. Some say the government should have offered to pay for cancellations or instead stepped up PCR testing if the goal is to keep the economy going amid a pandemic.

– India registered 45. 209 new cases amid a surge in festival season in the capital and many other parts of the country. At least three states – Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat – have imposed curfews in many cities. The Ministry of Health recorded 501 deaths in the past 24 hours on Sunday, with a total of 133. 227 people were killed.

– The states of South Australia and Victoria eased COVID-19 restrictions on Sunday as Australia kicks off the summer in a better position to fight the virus. Victoria, the most severely affected, went 23 days without a new infection. In response, Prime Minister Daniel Andrews announced a series of changes to the restrictions. The previously mandatory outdoor wearing of masks is no longer required if social distancing is possible. Masks must still be worn indoors and always be worn. House gatherings of up to 15 people are allowed and up to 50 people can gather outdoors. Up to 150 people can attend weddings, funerals, or religious services. Emerging from a statewide lockdown at midnight on Saturday, South Australian residents can now visit bars and restaurants in groups of up to 10 and hold social-distant gatherings of up to 50 people.

– Authorities are running mass tests and closing schools after China reported three new domestic cases in the past 24 hours – two in northern Inner Mongolia Province and one in Shanghai. The city of Manzhouli, Inner Mongolia, will begin testing all residents on Sunday, one day after the two cases are discovered. The city has suspended classes and closed public venues to tell residents not to gather for dinner. Local authorities in Shanghai found another case on Saturday after breaking 15. 416 people had tested after recently locally transmitted cases. The city is testing all residents of the Pudong New Area district. China is already running mass tests on up to 3 million residents in the northern city of Tianjin after five cases were found there last week. The total number of confirmed cases in China is 86. 431.

– Authorities in Sri Lanka said more than 600 coronavirus cases were discovered from the country’s heavily congested prisons as infections rise in the capital and its suburbs. A total of 652 cases were discovered in five prisons in the island state, including 609 inmates and 43 prison officials. The prisons in Sri Lanka are severely overloaded. More than 26. 000 inmates are in facilities with a total capacity of 10. 000 people crowded. The virus has broken out again in Sri Lanka since last month when two clusters emerged in the capital Colombo and its suburbs – one in a clothing factory and the other in a fish market. There were 16. 251 confirmed cases from the two clusters. There were 19 in total in Sri Lanka. 771 cases including 83 deaths.

South Korea, Coronavirus, Yonhap News Agency, Seoul