A notice has been issued by the Bokeo Provincial Taskforce for Covid-19 Prevention and Control clarifying the situation regarding a Burmese national who returned to Myanmar from Laos and tested positive for Covid-19.
According to the notice, on 24 June the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone Management Committee assisted in the return of 184 Burmese laborers back to Myanmar. The return was presided over by officials from both sides at the border checkpoint at Mom Village, Ton Pheung District, Bokeo Province.
All returnees were placed in isolation as per the regulations of the government of Myanmar, in Kamayut Township, Yangon.
On 4 July, the Bokeo Department of Foreign Affairs received information from the Myanmar Government that a laborer who had returned to Myanmar from the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone had tested positive for the Covid-19 coronavirus.
The man, aged 43, is the 311th case of infection in Myanmar, according to the Myanmar Times, and is now in South Okkalapa Specialist Hospital. Upon his return to Myanmar, he had been in isolation with laborers from several countries.
Laborers returning from Thailand, Singapore, Bangladesh, and India also tested positive for Covid-19.
The provincial taskforce, in cooperation with the Ton Pheung District committee, and the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone Management Committee, have begun investigating the incident.
Four laborers who had been in close proximity with the man have now been isolated at a specific center established in the economic zone, with entrances and exits under guard.
Initial blood tests of those in isolation showed negative results and the samples were sent to Vientiane for further examination, where all four tests also showed a negative result.
According to the notice, the Bokeo Taskforce for Covid-19 Prevention and Control will continue to closely monitor the situation to ensure that no other individuals in the special economic zone or the province are infected with the virus.
Myanmar has confirmed 318 cases of Covid-19, while Laos has confirmed 19 with no new cases since 12 April.
