Special Olympic Competitors from SARS riddled countries "banned" from Ireland.

kaimera

Our wonderful Minister for Health, has deemed [along with his SARS research team] that it's too great a risk to allow those attending the Special Olympics from countries with known SARS cases.

Is he jumping the gun or justified?

It doesn't reflect good on the country as a whole specially when Bray decided not to allow competitors to stay in the town either.

following that, I know Portlaoise is still undecided [as of this week] as wether to allow ppl to stay in the town.

what do you think about his decison?

Sparks

see also here

kaimera

oops.

Sorry Sparks. Mods can merge or delete this thread.

Mac daddy

but yet agian they are still letting all those so called chinese students into the country. what is going on there

Frank Grimes

Originally posted by Mac daddy
but yet agian they are still letting all those so called chinese students into the country. what is going on there

They study English while they're here, what do you think is going on?

Venom

To be perfectly honest, I have no problem with the banning of people from SARS riddled countries. A SARS breakout in Ireland would be devistating due to our inability to deal with it from a medical/healthcare prespective.

La_Gordy

It also shows how disgustingly ignorant they are when they are banning the compeditors but NOT the spectators from those countries.

Blitzkrieger

Why would the spectators come if the athlete's weren't? To cheer for the empty spot on land 4?

Talliesin

Originally posted by Venom
To be perfectly honest, I have no problem with the banning of people from SARS riddled countries.

Given that there aren't actually any countries that could be considered "riddled" with SARS by a long shot that point is moot.

Venom

How about China and Canada?

Talliesin

Originally posted by Venom
How about China and Canada?

:rolleyes: Oh FFS, Canada isn't even a country with a SARS problem (what 27, 28 days since a case in the community?) never mind "riddled".

I find myself with an urge to wave my hands in mock-scary style and go "whoooh, SARS, whooooh".

cujimmy

I am no supporter of this government, but it seems the minister is dammed when he goes for the soft option and ignores things and is dammed when he actually does something. For once he has shown the balls to make a difficult decision.

Frank Grimes

Originally posted by cujimmy
I am no supporter of this government, but it seems the minister is dammed when he goes for the soft option and ignores things and is dammed when he actually does something. For once he has shown the balls to make a difficult decision.

I think the main problem with the decision that he made was that it makes very little sense.
Why stop the athletes coming over to compete when they could come here on holiday without a problem?
It's just the usual nonsensical decision making I've come to expect from that lot, it's not really a good reflection on the country at all.

flyz

Originally posted by cujimmy
I am no supporter of this government, but it seems the minister is dammed when he goes for the soft option and ignores things and is dammed when he actually does something. For once he has shown the balls to make a difficult decision.

Difficult decision me arse, he's more interested in keeping his place in government is all.


The whole thing is a farce. Why would he only prevent the competitors from coming when they would be the ones most likely not to be infected?

Why has he not prevented ANY person from the infected countries from entering the country?

Or at least have a mandatory 10 day quarantine.
That's what he should have done for the Special Olympics.

Plus the chinese have a mandatory quarantine when leaving the country so there would be no chance of them bringing it over.

For a country that clamped down so efficently within days of the foot and mouth outbreak they aren't taking this one seriously at all. They don't even monitor the people who get off the flights from the infected countries.

Thanx 4 The Fish

Originally posted by flyz
Difficult decision me arse, he's more interested in keeping his place in government is all.


The whole thing is a farce. Why would he only prevent the competitors from coming when they would be the ones most likely not to be infected?

Why has he not prevented ANY person from the infected countries from entering the country?

Or at least have a mandatory 10 day quarantine.
That's what he should have done for the Special Olympics.

Plus the chinese have a mandatory quarantine when leaving the country so there would be no chance of them bringing it over.

For a country that clamped down so efficently within days of the foot and mouth outbreak they aren't taking this one seriously at all. They don't even monitor the people who get off the flights from the infected countries.

Firstly, the Chinese are not implementing their imaginary 10 day mandatory quarantine.

Secondly, why would the competitiors in the special olympics be the least likely to have contracted SARS ?

BTW, in Todays News.

Taiwan has announced another 55 cases of Sars, making 300 new cases this week alone.

In China, 20 new cases of Sars have been reported and a further three deaths. The death toll now stands at 303, with 5,285 cases of the virus.

Canada investigates four possible cases, a week after being declared SARS-free -

flyz

Originally posted by Thanx 4 The Fish
Firstly, the Chinese are not implementing their imaginary 10 day mandatory quarantine.

Ok well maybe I'm wrong about that. but they are taking extreme measures to try and prevent it from spreading :

http://asia.news.yahoo.com/030515/afp/030515115322top.html

Secondly, why would the competitiors in the special olympics be the least likely to have contracted SARS ?

Because they are competitors and I'm sure every effort is being made by each country to make sure that they are fit and healthy before they would have travelled to Ireland.

Plus had the athletes from the countries not agreed to go into quarantine before they arrived before our wonderful Minister came out and said they weren't allowed to come?

BTW, in Todays News.
Taiwan has announced another 55 cases of Sars, making 300 new cases this week alone.

In China, 20 new cases of Sars have been reported and a further three deaths. The death toll now stands at 303, with 5,285 cases of the virus.

Canada investigates four possible cases, a week after being declared SARS-free - [/B]

cheers for the update

The point I'm trying to make is that the government should have done their best to make sure that the athletes could come.

They should have put them into quarantine, like they had agreed to, and prevented the Press and any spectators from coming over.

To be honest it's the Press that are going to come anyway that I'm most worried about.