Burmese migrants massed on the border with Thailand

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In Burma, thousands of immigrants have returned for more than ten days from Thailand, fearing the closure of the borders. But other nationals are still massed at the border.

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With our correspondent in Rangoon , Sarah Bakaloglou

For several days, images have toured the media and social networks in Burma: those of a crowd of Burmese migrants, agglutinated at the border to return to their country. Some people climb the fences, before dispersing in several regions.

Quarantine centers set up at the border

Since mid-March, more than 20,000 Burmese workers have arrived at Thailand's official border posts, which in turn has more than 1,000 cases of coronavirus on its territory. Arrivals which worry the Burmese authorities. On Sunday March 29, they announced a positive coronavirus case among those who returned. He is a man tested in Rangoon.

At the border, authorities first asked returning migrants to quarantine themselves at home. An order almost impossible to enforce, for lack of means. Then, quarantine centers were set up at the border, but many workers have already returned home. The government now fears a major epidemic risk and has been tightening its measures for a few days. International flights will be suspended from Monday evening for approximately two weeks.

Burma, until then one of the rare countries also populated with 54 million inhabitants not to be touched by the pandemic, declared on Monday March 23, its first cases of new coronavirus.

The Burmese health ministry said one of its 36-year-old nationals from the United States and another 26-year-old national from the United Kingdom had both tested positive. " We are going to investigate all the people who were in close contact with these two men, " the ministry said in its statement. Since then, 14 cases, including three French tourists, have been confirmed.

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• Coronavirus
• Health and Medicine
• Burma