A crowd of Chinese nationals gathered outside the Chinese embassy in Singapore at Tanglin Road on Aug. 25 to voice their frustration over new Covid-19 testing rules that could potentially bar them from returning to China.
Those who showed up were apparently unhappy they were unable to get a test at health facilities in Singapore as they were asymptomatic, Bloomberg reported.
Those who Bloomberg spoke to were not travelling by the newly established green lane, and were prepared to undergo the 14-day quarantine upon returning home to China.
A video of the scene was uploaded to Facebook by Vaster News.
It showed people standing along the street, with a police car on the side of the road.
Rules issued after 13 people tested positive on Scoot flight to Tianjin
These rules include taking a nucleic acid test that is conducted within five days prior to the flight, testing negative for the virus, and emailing a copy of the test certificate, along with a signed health statement, to the embassy for review and approval.
Should they be unable to take the test in time or test negative for the virus, they will be unable to board the flight.
The rules were announced two days after a Scoot flight that arrived in Tianjin, China, on Aug. 19 from Singapore, had 13 Chinese national passengers on board with Covid-19.
All of them were asymptomatic with 36.5°C body temperature recorded upon arrival, but tested positive for the virus when subjected to nucleic acid tests.
The new rules were also mentioned in an email mistakenly sent out by Scoot to several customers who have not booked flights to China, about the need to meet the requirements ahead of a flight scheduled to depart Singapore for Guangzhou on Aug. 30.
MOH releases notice stating that travellers can seek help for tests
The Ministry of Health (MOH) has since released a notice referencing the new rules by China.
MOH said travellers who require pre-departure tests in Singapore for flight departures on or after Sept. 1, can approach the following ministries for help, depending on their reasons for travel.
- MTI: For travel related to essential business and employment,
- MOM: Travel by individuals with MOM-issued Work Permit, S Pass, and Special Pass,
- MOH: Travel related to education, compassionate reasons, or otherwise.
Passengers lined up for tests on August 26
The Straits Times (ST) reported on Aug. 26 that several passengers on the Aug. 30 Guangzhou-bound Scoot flight were seen queuing outside the former Shuqun Secondary School to get tested, along with the passengers of other China-bound flights.
One construction worker said he could not afford the cost of the test and was asking for help from his employer.
According to the email sent out by Scoot, the test costs S$186 and must be paid before results are released to them.
In addition, given that the nucleic acid results require a turnaround time of 48 hours, passengers have been urged to adhere to the allocated testing time slot of 9am to 10.30am on Aug. 26 to be in time for the flight on Aug. 30.
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Top image collage from新加坡万事通 Vaster News Facebook