Tonga’s border remains closed until July 8 as PM extends state of emergency

Tonga border is expected to remain closed to non-essential travel until next month.

The government has extended its Covid-19 state of emergency until the 8th of July subject to further review.

A nightly curfew now starts at 12am until 5am, while funeral gatherings shall be restricted to a total of 50 people indoors and 100 people outdoors with an authorised officer to be present throughout.

Social distancing restriction remains in place.

The Prime Minister said the new announcement for the Covid-19 measure was intended to “prevent or minimise risk and the loss of human life to Covid-19.”

“Therefore I hereby renew the declaration of State of Emergency that was made on 15 May.”

The statement from the Prime Minister’s office comes amidst calls from Tongans stranded overseas for the government to lift its border restrictions.

About more than 4,000 Tongans were currently stranded overseas.

This included a 29-strong squad who have been sleeping on the floor of an Auckland church in New Zealand and surviving off donated food.

The team from Ha’apai arrived in New Zealand on 3 March, intending to spend a month playing club rugby teams around the North Island, before heading home, the Guardian reports.

As Kaniva News reported last week Dr Collin Tukuitonga, who is Associate Dean Pacific at the University of Auckland Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences said Tonga should be a priority in re-opening quarantine free travel.

He said the risk of introducing Covid-19 into New Zealand from the islands was near-zero and when New Zealand had been Covid-19-free for 28 days, the risk to the islands was near zero.

The kingdom has no confirmed cases of covid-19 to date.

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