PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA (AP) – Cambodia is shutting down its most popular tourist destination, the centuries-old Angkor temple complex, for two weeks to help visitors curb the country’s coronavirus outbreak.
The closure of the world-famous website is the latest in a series of measures the country is taking after the number of cases of coronavirus rose in February.
The Apsara Authority, the government agency overseeing the archeological site, said it was important to stop local and foreign tourists from visiting the temples temporarily to combat the virus. It says in a statement from Wednesday that visitors will be banned from April 7 to 20.
The Angkor site, in the northwestern province of Siem Reap, attracted 2.2 million foreign tourists in 2019, but last year saw a sharp decline due to disruption caused by the pandemic. Cambodia allows tourists, but they have to undergo a quarantine.
The Ministry of Health on Thursday announced 113 new local cases of the coronavirus and two deaths. Cambodia recorded a total of 3,028 cases, including 23 deaths.
The ministry traced the latest outbreak to a foreign resident who broke into a hotel quarantine and went to a nightclub in early February. The government announced on February 20 a planned two-week closure of all public schools, cinemas, pubs and entertainment venues in the capital, Phnom Penh.
As the number of cases increased, the closures were expanded by schools, gyms, concert halls, museums and other gathering places.
An unfinished luxury hotel in the capital has been converted into a coronavirus hospital for 500 rooms, and the authorities are enforcing a new law that imposes punitive penalties for violating health rules.
The use of face masks has been made mandatory in Phnom Penh and four of the country’s most populous provinces.
Earlier this month, the government tightened other restrictions, including a two-hour evening clock from 8pm to 5pm in Phnom Penh.
It also broadened its coronavirus vaccination campaign, targeting 1 million doses per month in April. By the end of March, about 400,000 people – about one-third of whom were members of the military – had been vaccinated.
By the end of March, Cambodia had obtained more than 3.1 million doses of vaccines from China and through the World Health Organization’s COVAX initiative. Cambodia has about 17 million inhabitants.
Prime Minister Hun Sen said on his social media channels this week that vaccinations are voluntary, but that civil servants and members of the military are in danger of being fired if they are not vaccinated.