In recent weeks, several countries around the world, including the United States, England, Spain and Italy, among others, have moved to reinstate measures to mitigate the arrival of potential COVID-infected passengers from China, after China decided to end its «zero COVID» policy and scheduled the reopening of its borders.
This provoked a reaction from the airlines, which through IATA expressed that it is «extremely disappointing to see this knee-jerk reinstatement of measures that have proven ineffective over the last three years. »
«Research undertaken around the arrival of the Omicron variant concluded that putting barriers in the way of travel made no difference to the peak spread of infections. At most, restrictions delayed that peak by a few days. If a new variant emerges in any part of the world, the same situation would be expected,»» said Willie Walsh, IATA’s director general.
«That’s why governments should listen to the advice of experts, including the WHO, that advise against travel restrictions. We have the tools to manage COVID-19 without resorting to ineffective measures that cut off international connectivity, damage economies and destroy jobs. Governments must base their decisions on ‘science facts’ rather than ‘science politics’.», he concluded.
