From kissing bans to the death penalty: Here's how seriously different countries are taking the coronavirus outbreak
China Daily via Reuters
As thousands of coronavirus cases are being recorded across the world, governments are trying everything to clamp down on its rapid spread.
China has borne the brunt of the epidemic, and has the most extreme response. Other countries have taken varying approaches to prevention and containment.
In the US, the Trump administration has been criticized for the level of seriousness with which it has treated the virus.
As the number of global coronavirus cases approaches 95,000, the world is struggling to cope with its spread.
From Saudi Arabia to Japan and France, governments have taken a range of measures to stop the spread of the virus as quickly as possible.
Travel restrictions, limited quarantines and banning mass gatherings are at the milder end of the responses employed.
On the extremes, there have been total lockdowns of cities, and threats to implement the death penalty on those who deliberately hamper the work of public health officials.
China, which has borne the brunt of the outbreak, was initially slow to respond to the virus, but then implemented the harshest measures in the world.
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Some of the measures included putting entire cities on lockdown, including the epicenter Wuhan. Almost 500 million people were affected.
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Source: Reuters
It also included building two makeshift hospitals in just 10 days, to accommodate the influx of coronavirus patients that had to be treated as quickly as possible.
AP
Wuhan also turned sports centers, exhibition halls, and other local venues into makeshift hospitals, creating over 10,000 beds for more patients.
Reuters
Source: Business Insider
Some counties in China took measures to the extreme by offering $140 to anybody who reported someone who had come there from Wuhan.
REUTERS/Martin Pollard
Source: Business Insider
Another province threatened the death penalty to anyone caught deliberately spreading the virus.
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In South Korea — the country with the most coronavirus cases outside of China — President Moon Jae-In said the government was now "waging a war."
Reuters
Source: The Guardian
Instead of putting cities on lockdown, South Korea has chosen to randomly test thousands of people everywhere from hospitals to drive-through stations.
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Source: Bloomberg
Inspired by fast-food restaurants, South Korean officials started testing people in their cars from February 26.
Medical members take samples from a driver with suspected symptoms of the COVID-19 coronavirus, at a "drive-through" virus test facility in Goyang, north of Seoul, on February 29, 2020.
Ahn Young-joon/AP
Source: CNN
Drivers are expected to randomly pull into parking lots, to give saliva samples and get their temperatures measured. Their results get sent to them via SMS.
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Source: CNN
Meanwhile, authorities have been disinfecting public buildings, streets, as well as public transportation.
Reuters
Source: EuroNews
Japan has also been struggling with the spread of coronavirus. The country saw its biggest one-day increase on March 4, with 36 new infections.
Reuters
Source: Reuters
In an effort to clamp down on the spread, the government banned anyone coming from the Hubei and Zhejiang provinces in China from entering the country on February 12.
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Source: Kyodo News
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe also sent shockwaves across the country when he announced on February 27 that all schools would shut down until early April.
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Source: Business Insider
The governor of the country's worst-affected prefecture, Hokkaido, also issued a state of emergency on February 28, leaving restaurants and shops looking deserted.
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Source: Business Insider
Stadiums are also affected. Japan's professional baseball league announced on February 26 that it will play its 72 remaining pre-season games in empty arenas.
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Source: Business Insider, Sports Illustrated
But the country has also been criticized.
Commuters wearing masks stand in a packed train at the Shinagawa Station in Tokyo, Monday, March 2, 2020.
Jae C. Hong/AP Photo
It bungled the quarantine of the Diamond Princess cruise ship, which health experts said was "completely inadequate in terms of infection control."
The cruise ship Diamond Princess is anchored off the Yokohama Port in Yokohama, near Tokyo.
Eugene Hoshiko, File via AP
Source: Business Insider, BBC
Another country that has been criticized for its lack of management is Iran. Ministers have been accused of misleading the public and downplaying the severity of the virus.
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Source: The Washington Post
After a surge in confirmed cases, Iran shut down its schools, universities and cultural centers on February 23. It also started disinfecting buses and subway trains.
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Source: Business Insider,
Iran's prosecutor general said on March 1 that hoarding necessary equipment or doing anything disruptive to the supply of healthcare items could end in the death penalty.
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Source: Business Insider, PressTV
On March 4, Friday prayers were canceled for a second consecutive week. On March 5 it was announced that all football matches would be suspended until March 19.
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Health Minister Said Namaki also announced a nationwide screening campaign on March 4, according to BBC.
Source: Twitter, AFP, Tasnim News
8% of Iran's parliament has been infected with the virus, leading ministers to cancel any public gatherings, including government meetings.
Iranian Supreme Leader Press Office/Getty Images
Source: Business Insider
In an effort to combat the spread of coronavirus in crowded jails, authorities also temporarily released 54,000 prisoners on March 3.
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Source: Business Insider, BBC
Amid fears that the virus will spread further, neighboring countries such as Pakistan, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia have partially or wholly closed their borders with Iran.
Hussein FALEH / AFP) (Photo by HUSSEIN FALEH/AFP via Getty Images
Source: CNN, Business Insider
While it has no direct border with Iran, Saudi Arabia still took precautionary measures days before its first recorded case.
Reuters
On March 1, a day before its first case was confirmed, the kingdom prepared 25 hospitals to handle the outbreak, according to Middle East Monitor.
On February 27, it banned pilgrims from entering the country and closed down two of the holiest shrines of Islam, the Kaaba and the Great Mosque in Mecca.
Reuters
The official press agency said that travelers must remain in the Gulf states for 14 days and show no signs of coronavirus symptoms before being allowed back into the Kingdom, Gulf News reported.
The states include the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, and Qatar, according to Reuters.
Source: Gulf News
Officials also announced that the kingdom would be barring all incoming passengers from any Gulf state.
Reuters
Source: Gulf News
In India, which has 29 confirmed cases, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on March 4 that he won't be attending this year's Holi celebrations. They begin on March 9.
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New coronavirus cases also jumped sharply in Europe, with Italy being the worst-hit. As of March 5, the country record over 3,000 cases, mostly in its northern regions.
Reuters
Source: BBC
On February 26, the government put 11 towns in Lombardy on lockdown.
Marzio Toniolo / Reuters
Police are patrolling the towns and have imposed fines on anyone caught trying to enter or leave the outbreak areas.
Associated Press
Source: The Guardian
Meanwhile, public transport is being disinfected daily...
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Source: BBC
...football matches in the Serie A league will be played behind closed doors for a month...
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Source: BBC
... tourist sites, including the famous Milan cathedral, have closed to visitors...
Getty/Miguel Medina
...and schools and universities will be shut for 10 days, the government announced on March 4.
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Source: BBC
Museums in France also shut down temporarily. The Louvre closed its doors for several days before reopening them again on March 4.
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Source: New York Times
French Prime Minister Emmanuel Macron said his government would take control of the country's stock of face masks to ensure they are available for all patients and health workers.
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On March 4, the government also regulated the price of hand sanitizer after panic buying sent prices in shops soaring, according to Business Insider.
Source: Business Insider
On February 29, the country's health minister, Olivier Véran, told French citizens to stop participating in the traditional greeting of kissing someone on both cheeks
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Source: Business Insider
On the same day, the country introduced a ban on public gatherings of over 5,000 people, which resulted in the cancellation of the Paris half marathon.
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Source: DW
In the UK, Boris Johnson's government published an action plan to tackle the virus, which includes preparing "no-go zones" and a ban on mass public gatherings.
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Source: Business Insider
However, as of March 5, the drastic-sounding measures have yet to be enforced.
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The plan states the UK would also enlist retired medical staff to cope with the crisis and that there is a chance that people would be working from home for at least three months.
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Source: Business Insider
Cities across the US are also starting to prepare for the virus. Currently, there are at least 150 reported cases, across 16 states.
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Source: BBC
Each state seems to be handling the coronavirus epidemic differently.
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New York announced on March 4 that it would be doing a deep clean of its subway systems and public transit vehicles daily...
Reuters
Source: Business Insider
...a measure which is also being taken up by Seattle in Washington state, where the majority of US deaths have been recorded.
Reuters
Source: New York Times
The state also declared an emergency last month after its first coronavirus death was confirmed on February 29.
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Source: Business Insider, NPR
California followed suit on March 5, also declaring a state of emergency after its first coronavirus-related death.
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Source: BBC
Several schools in Washington state, Oregon, Rhode Island, and New York have shut down mainly as a precautionary measure.
Reuters
Source: CNBC, Washington Post
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump has been accused by public health experts of downplaying coronavirus fears and "confusing" the public after contradicting official CDC warnings.
The New Yorker cover from March 5, 2020, shows Trump wearing a surgical mask over his eyes.
New Yorker/Twitter
Source: Business Insider, Business Insider
On March 4, the US Senate passed an $8.3 billion bill to combat the spread of the virus and develop vaccines.
Reuters
Source: Reuters
In Australia, panic buying because of coronavirus fears led to major supermarkets enforcing strict limits on toilet paper and hand sanitizer purchases.
Reuters
The country's biggest supermarket chain, Woolworths, is allowing each customer to buy no more than four toilet paper stacks each and two hand sanitizer bottles each, Business Insider Australia reported.
Source: Business Insider
Countries that have been praised for their handling of the coronavirus are Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore.
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A senior WHO official said on February 2019: "Singapore is leaving no stone unturned, testing every case of influenza-like illness and pneumonia...other countries should follow its example."
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Source: Straits Times
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