No stricter Covid entry requirements for Chinese tourists, Thai minister says

BANGKOK - Thailand will not impose stricter Covid-19 screening for Chinese tourists but will treat them the same as tourists from other countries, Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said on Thursday.

He made the statement before joining a meeting of government agencies to discuss preparations for the arrival of Chinese tourists beginning on Jan 8.

That is the date when China lifts its travel restrictions.

The move follows the end of Beijing’s zero-Covid policy, which effectively prevented Chinese citizens from travelling outside their country.

Mr Anutin said the Department of Disease Control would be responsible for implementing measures and guidelines to treat foreign tourists equally. He also mentioned that Thailand has strong ties with China.

Several countries such as India, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Spain and South Korea have followed the US in imposing tighter entry requirements for travellers from China.

The measures, which include negative Covid-19 tests, are due to concerns about the surge in infections in China.

Beijing has called these restrictions discriminatory.

Most countries in South-east Asia are not imposing stricter Covid-19 restrictions on tourists from China.

“What we have to do is strictly adhere to existing measures [to contain Covid-19], such as wearing facemasks in crowded places,” Mr Anutin said.

The Department of Disease Control will monitor the situation and adjust prevention measures if new Covid-19 variants spread in Thailand, the minister said.

China was the largest source of foreign tourists for Thailand before the pandemic, with almost 11 million arrivals in 2019, according to government data.

Tourism accounted for nearly 20 per cent of national income before the pandemic.

Tough border restrictions at the height of the health crisis took a toll on hotels, restaurants and tour operators across the country.

Tanes Petsuwan, deputy governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, said he expects about 60,000 Chinese nationals to enter Thailand this month and for numbers to steadily rise.

“We expect Chinese tourists to come to Thailand after Chinese New Year,” Tourism Minister Pipat Ratchakitprakan said.

In December Thailand clocked its 10 millionth international visitor for 2022 – a major increase on the 430,000 seen in 2021 but still way off the 40 million arrivals of 2019.

Thai officials are forecasting some 20 million arrivals in 2023, though they believe Chinese tourists could push the figure up to around 25 million.

On Wednesday, four Thai health experts said there is no need for Thailand to panic about the return of Chinese tourists.

Chinese tourists generate a great amount of revenue for Thailand, said Professor Prasit Watanapa, an adviser to Siriraj Hospital’s Faculty of Medicine. “We should not be afraid of them,” he wrote on the Department of Disease Control’s Facebook page.

The risk of Covid-19 infection can be reduced by wearing face masks, maintaining social distancing, regular hand washing, and receiving booster shots, Professor Prasit said.

Dr Manoon Leechawengwongs, a respiratory specialist at Vichaiyut Hospital, said people have to learn to live with Covid-19.

“We must prepare ourselves by receiving booster shots, wearing face masks in crowded places, maintaining social distancing, and washing hands regularly,” Dr Manoon said.

The virus mutates over time everywhere, not only in China, he said.

Dr Thiravat Hemachudha, head of Chulalongkorn University’s Information Centre for Emerging Infectious Diseases, noted that the Omicron subvariant spreading in China can be found in countries worldwide.

Thailand’s Covid-19 prevention measures – such as having health insurance – are appropriate for Chinese tourists, he said.

Dr Chalermchai Boonyaleepun, deputy chairman of the Senate committee on public health, echoed similar sentiments.

Chinese tourists will not trigger a new wave of Covid-19 in Thailand, he said. AFP, THE NATION/ASIA NEWS NETWORK