COVID-19

Delta outbreak exposes New Zealand’s low vaccination rates

Reuters

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Delta outbreak exposes New Zealand’s low vaccination rates

ARDERN. In this file photo, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern participates in a televised debate with National leader Judith Collins at TVNZ in Auckland, New Zealand, on September 22, 2020.

Fiona Goodall/Pool/Reuters

Eleven new cases are reported on Thursday, August 19, taking the total to 21 in the latest outbreak that ended the country's six-month, virus-free run

New Zealand’s coronavirus cases jumped on Thursday, August 19, as questions grew about the government’s response to the pandemic given the slowest vaccination rate among developed countries and the economic pressures of prolonged isolation.

Eleven new cases were reported on Thursday, taking the total to 21 in the latest outbreak that ended the country’s six-month, virus-free run.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the virus has not been in the community for long as authorities had linked its origin to a returnee from Sydney on August 7.

“This is a significant development. It means now we can be fairly certain how and when the virus entered the country,” Ardern told a news conference.

“And the period in which cases were in the community was relatively short.”

New Zealanders had been living without curbs until Ardern ordered a snap 3-day nationwide lockdown on Tuesday, August 17, after a case was found in the largest city Auckland, the first in the country since February.

Ardern, who shut the country’s borders in March 2020, had announced plans for a gradual reopening this month following pressure from businesses and public sectors facing worker shortages that policymakers fear will fuel inflation.

The new cases may delay those plans and are causing concern in the nation, which has struggled to get its population vaccinated.

Only about 23% of its 5 million people have been fully vaccinated, the lowest rate among the 38 members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

“It’s no longer clear Jacinda Ardern’s strategy is the right one,” read one opinion piece in the New Zealand Herald.

Opposition National Party leader Judith Collins labeled the vaccination rollout as a failure.

Experts also said vaccinating everyone was the way to return to some normalcy.

“The virus is out there. We cannot go on thinking we will keep it out forever,” said immunologist Graham Le Gros, Director of Malaghan Institute of Medical Research and Program Director at Vaccine Alliance Aotearoa New Zealand.

“I think what is critical is that as a nation we now seriously focus on getting as many people vaccinated as possible, it is the only way our country can return to normality for the sake of our health and people’s livelihoods.”

Apart from some anti-lockdown protests, New Zealanders mostly followed rules and stayed at home. The government warned not doing so will result in chaos, as seen in neighboring Australia.

“We have seen the dire consequences of taking too long to act in other countries, not least our neighbors,” Ardern said. – Rappler.com

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