Followers take social distance to attend a Mass on January 9 on a road near Quiapo Church in Manila.
Photographer: Ted Aljibe / AFP / Getty Images
Photographer: Ted Aljibe / AFP / Getty Images
Tens of thousands of people ignored government advice and flocked to the Philippine capital Manila on Saturday to celebrate the festival of the Black Nazarene, a statue believed to have healing powers.
It is estimated that 400,000 people have been through the Quiapo district in the city for 4 hours local time, Lieutenant-Colonel Carlo Magno Manuel, spokesman for the Manila police district, told reporters. Due to coronavirus restrictions, only 400 visitors were allowed at a time inside the church where the statue stands.
More than a million people have taken part in the annual pilgrimage in the past year. On Saturday, most people seem to have heeded the advice of authorities and health experts, urging devotees to stay home and attend online.
Authorities were quick to disperse the crowd of early-morning visitors and ensure that physical distance is strictly enforced, the health department said in a statement.
The Philippines had the second highest number of Covid-19 cases in Southeast Asia on January 9, with more than 485,000.
The Black Nazarene Festival is one of the country’s biggest annual security challenges as the faithful of Asia’s most Catholic land troop to the capital.
(Update the figure in second paragraph, adds the statement from the Department of Health in fourth.)