Tainan yesterday announced it would extend a ban on dining at restaurants until July 26, along with more than half the cities and counties in Taiwan.
Tainan Mayor Huang Wei-che (黃偉哲) made the announcement after the city on Friday experienced a backlash for being the only one of the nation’s six special municipalities to say it would conditionally allow dine-in services starting on Tuesday.
The Central Epidemic Command Center on Thursday announced that a level 3 COVID-19 alert would be extended for two more weeks, until July 26, but it eased some restrictions, including a nationwide ban on dine-in services at restaurants, traditional markets, night markets and department store food courts.
Eateries can reopen for customers to eat in if they can implement the center’s guidelines, including social distancing, it said.
While many local governments have said that they would maintain the ban on dining in, Tainan’s decision to allow it has drawn concern from residents that the risk of COVID-19 transmission would rise in the city.
On Facebook, people urged Huang to reconsider the policy, saying that people from other cities and counties might come to Tainan in droves for tourism.
The city might not have the ability to inspect every restaurant to ensure they are properly enforcing epidemic prevention measures, they said.
Huang said the city government had discussed the policy with more than a dozen restaurant and beverage industry trade unions, and they all agreed to continue the ban for two more weeks.
The city residents’ concerns are a good sign that they care about their health, so the city government took their opinions and those of industry workers into consideration in upholding the ban, he said.
Following Tainan, Changhua, Hualien, Nantou and Taitung counties yesterday afternoon also said they would maintain the ban, despite earlier announcements that they would lift it.
Only Kinmen, Lienchiang and Penghu counties plan to conditionally allow a return to dining in from Tuesday.
Additional reporting by CNA
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