Omicron variant: are vaccine passports discriminatory, or needed more than ever for Hong Kong to weather potential Covid-19 onslaught?
- Various sectors of society say policy can be discriminatory and undermine mental health of city’s elderly
- Experts insist move is needed, especially when unvaccinated diners remove masks to eat at restaurants, and with the world in the grip of the new variant
A proposal by Hong Kong authorities to introduce vaccine passports and ban unvaccinated people from venues such as restaurants has run into stiff opposition from across society, including business owners, legal experts and elderly groups.
They said the idea was unfair and could undermine elderly residents’ mental health, while some warned the policy could hammer operating revenues by as much as 30 per cent.
Health experts, however, argued the potential move was justified, as unvaccinated diners could bring more risks when they removed their masks to eat.
Nip was responding to concerns over the heavily mutated Omicron coronavirus variant, which scientists fear may be more transmissible.
On Monday, he said: “When some people are choosing not to get the shots for non-medical reasons, we will need to have different treatment for them and those who have been vaccinated.
“Otherwise, the inoculated might have to pay the consequences that will arise from the choices made by the unvaccinated.”
