Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1273535
3 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 29 JULY 2020 NEWS KARL AZZOPARDI SEVEN new cases of COVID-19 were registered on Tuesday, bringing the num- ber of active cases to 34, excluding the 65 cases reported among the rescued mi- grants yesterday evening. 1,353 swab tests were carried out in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of swabs to 122,348. The health ministry said two of yester- day's new cases were imported, whilst another cases forms part of the Friday cluster. No recoveries were registered. The total number of cases recorded is 708, while the total number of recovered cases are 665. Nine people have died from COVID-19 since the pandemic started. In the past few days, many organisations have called on the authorities to ban mass gatherings after a spike in cases was re- corded following a weekend party at a St Julians' hotel. English Language Schools call for ban on mass gatherings The Federation of English Language Teaching Organisations – Malta (FEL- TOM) has called on all the authorities concerned to immediately ban all forms of mass gatherings such as massive par- ties, concerts, and public gatherings. In a statement isssued yesterday, FEL- TOM said it considers the encourage- ment of such gatherings as outright ir- responsible and short-sighted. FELTOM's call came after authorities yesterday reported seven new coronavi- tus cases, two of them imported, but al- so following a huge spike in new cases last week, many tied to a weekend party at the Radisson Hotel. "A fresh spike in cases can potentially harm what up till now was Malta's 'ace up one's sleeve' – that of being one of the safest destinations for travellers – given that cases are very low thanks to the way Malta's health authorities have handled COVID-19," the federation said. "In fact, some schools have already be- gun to receive calls as to whether agents should continue to push Malta as a safe destination." FELTOM said this moment was not about being calm and positive, but about being realistic and humble enough to admit that it is still very early to declare victory over the pandemic. It said all its member schools in the EFL industry were continually abiding by all guidelines and protocols with regards to the use of masks and social distancing. "Our position remains that schools should keep following such guidelines even though these are not enforced by the Ministry," FELTOM said. The federation has also cancelled the annual teenager parties usually hosted for minors. "Unless these mass events are stopped, we will soon have to face a new lock- down which will be devastating, not only for tourism but for all the coun- try and its economy," it said. "Who will then shoulder the responsibility?" Health professionals back doctors' union mass events Malta's medical associations have joined a call by the doctors' union to ban all mass events with immediate ef- fect in light of the recent spike in coro- navirus cases. A number of medical associations said on Monday that they were endorsing today's appeal by the Medical Associ- ation of Malta, and were "strongly and publicly calling on the government to revoke all permits for mass events." The health professionals said the gov- ernment should "prioritise the health and wellbeing of the whole nation over the economic interests of a minority." They also called on the government to be more attentive to public health rec- ommendations when formulating poli- cy in the future. "After months of restrictions to con- tain the spread of the COVID pan- demic, we were pleased to note the progressive return to a new normality, that struck the balance between the economic needs of the country and the mitigation measures that will continue to contain the virus," the medical asso- ciations said. "This balance is essential to ensure that this important recovery is not jeop- ardised and the low number of active cases registered in the last few weeks is a testimony to the success of this ap- proach. Importantly, many health ser- vices that had to be postponed or sus- pended during the COVID crisis have been restored to the benefit of our pa- tients and the population at large." The health professionals said they had noted with "grave concern" the recent spike in COVID cases, which they said resulted from the organisation of mass events. "In the weeks to come there are sever- al such events planned, that will bring together tens of thousands of revellers, in a context where mitigation measures are difficult to implement," the associa- tions said. "As we have seen, these events have the potential to result in large surges of cases which are more difficult to con- tain and risk compromising all the gains that have been made through our col- lective sacrifice at the early stages of the pandemic." Unfortunately, the government has yet to sensibly respond to the spike in cas- es, by heeding the growing calls for the prohibition of such events, they added. Public health alert On Monday, authorities issued a pub- lic health alert asking people who at- tended the Santa Venera feast to get tested for COVID-19. The alert was issued after a person who tested positive for coronavirus over the past few days informed authorities that he visited the Santa Venera band club on Wednesday 22 July, and the band march on Thursday 23 July. The authorities asked people who at- tended these events to call 111 to get tested and monitor for symptoms for 14 days. The development came after a spike in cases related to a weekend party held at the Radisson Hotel last week. Up until last week, the number of ac- tive cases has dropped to single digit figures. The Santa Venera festa alert came 24 hours after Prime Minister Robert Ab- ela said people "sowing doubt and fear" over the number of COVID-19 cases were motivated by a desire to harm the government. Abela told Labour Party delegates that the economy will remain open and gov- ernment will not succumb to fear over COVID-19. On that same day, last Sunday, Malta registered 14 new cases of coronavirus, the highest daily number since the end of May. Nine of the cases were linked to the weekend party held at the Radisson Ho- tel. Calls for ban on mass gatherings as number of active cases increases Coronavirus