Cambodia's Hun Sen says country on 'brink of death' from COVID-19 surge
15 April, 2021
Spiralling COVID-19 cases have put Cambodia "on the brink of death", its premier Hun Sen has warned, as the united states imposed lockdowns in the administrative centre Phnom Penh and a near by city.
The Southeast Asian kingdom has seen COVID-19 cases surge since February, when an outbreak was initially detected among its Chinese expatriate community.
Authorities said last week that hospitals in Phnom Penh were running out of beds and that they had transformed schools and marriage party halls into treatment centres, while Hun Sen threatened quarantine-breakers with jail time.
Phnom Penh and adjacent city Ta Khmau were on Wednesday (Apr 14) night put under lockdown for 14 days to curb the spread, effectively halting the movement greater than two million people.
"Please my people - join your time and efforts to get rid of this dangerous event," pled premier Hun Sen in a recorded address aired on state-run television late Wednesday night.
"We are on the brink of death already," he said. "If we don't join hands together, we will check out real death."
Cambodia's latest announced figures exceeded 4,800, but the premier said Wednesday an additional 300 cases had been detected.
Phnom Penh and Ta Khmau residents are actually barred from leaving their homes for two weeks except to visit the hospital or to buy medicine, while only two household members will be allowed out to buy food.
On Thursday morning, police blocked motorists from passing a checkpoint create at the border between the two cities, with residents showing their ID cards hoping to pass through.
Blockades were also erected around the major Norodom Boulevard around the iconic Independence Monument to avoid people from travelling.
As the kingdom has seen improvements in its healthcare during the past decade, its infrastructure - especially in rural areas - is still poor, with a lack of services and qualified doctors.
Inequality also plagues the system, with reports of low income families being turned away from hospitals.
Prior to the community outbreak was detected in February, Cambodia's COVID-19 toll was comparatively lower than its regional neighbours - but experts had chalked it up to the lack of widespread testing.
Source: