By Staff Writer
Stranded Samoans desperate to return home from New Zealand are turning into a major strain for the border watchdogs on the alert to enforce the coronavirus pandemic restrictions.
Firm health requirements have to be in order, like a medical certificate to confirm a virus test taken within 3 days, before travellers are allowed to make the trip to Samoa.
These border restrictions disrupted the first in a series of scheduled flights by Air New Zealand last week, when only 6 people instead of 150 flew in as initially planned on Friday 22 May 2020.
Airline officials informed local Government of the decision to off load booked passengers before the flight took off with cargo for Samoa.
The Director General Of Health, Leausa Dr. Take Naseri, confirmed the new arrivals led by the new Chief Justice, who is taking up his judiciary appointment after he is isolated for 14 days in quarantine.
The New Zealand High Commissioner and his wife were included as well as expatriate managers of international companies based in Samoa.
“Our new Chief Justice is being quarantined in a hotel while the others live on their own so they are allowed to remain isolated at home,” Leausa disclosed.
“All went through the health requirements they must meet in New Zealand before they flew to Samoa.”
As head of the health task force, Leausa, is becoming increasingly faced with growing pressures from the stranded Samoans determined to return at the earliest.
“The problem is they are becoming so impatient all they want is to hop on the flight and be home in Samoa, but it does not work that way.
“First they have to follow and meet all our health requirements and be prepared to be kept isolated for 14 days.”
The repatriation of stranded travellers started from Samoa with New Zealand passport holders allowed to fly home under border lockdown restrictions.
While they too were subject to New Zealand border control requirements, they were arriving from a virus free country.
The opposite goes for stranded Samoans flying into the country from New Zealand where there are already confirmed cases of the virus.
More recent pressure has been added with highly publicised video clips of stranded sailors as far as the Caribbean, pleading to be brought home.
The chances of an immediate response is unlikely, according to Leausa.
“Our stranded people flying in from New Zealand to Samoa is from just one country to another and that’s it.
“These sailor have to fly through several countries to get to Samoa and most of these countries are also in lockdown mode like us.
“It means they will have to go through all the restrictions in every country they will pass through.”
Leausa agree with the general understanding that they are better off where they are with the shipping companies looking after them well.
The same advice also goes to all other Samoans caught out by the virus pandemic far from home as long as they are safe and in good care.
Leausa and his health task force are being hardened up to keep a tight lid on allowing people into Samoa unless there is a cure or vaccine against the virus.
A simmering swell of public protest is already being felt even against the return of stranded Samoans and the risks of the feared virus slipping into the country.
A total of six flights are already scheduled to cater for the stranded travellers returning from New Zealand.
The flight arrangements are after every 14 days quarantine period and with the rescheduling of last week’s trip to this coming Friday, it is likely the last stranded travellers will be in by August.
More than 900 Samoans are listed as stranded travellers but the list has since increased to more than a thousand.