Omicron variant leaves more than 200 Brazilians stranded at South African border | Globalism

• Discovery of an omicron variant leaves thousands of tourists stranded in South Africa
• A Brazilian flight on a family vacation has been canceled and he doesn’t know when he will return

Pre-operative examinations are scheduled, according to the mother who is in contact with the girl’s doctor. Worried, she does not know when they will be able to travel and remembers that her daughter cannot wait any longer for the surgery. Her sentiment is also one of resentment at the restrictions that countries place on tourists from parts of South Africa or who have been in this region in the 14 days prior to the arrival date.

“There is no way to calm down now. We are waiting for our arrival date and we don’t even know when the flight will take place,” he said. For Vera Lucia, this still shows that the world is not united. “South Africa helped discover a problem that could affect the entire world and, as a result, the country is being punished for it,” he said.

Another Brazilian who has also lived in Johannesburg – for six years – and is planning to visit her family in Brazil at the end of the year is Karina Policarpo, who works in a photography studio and is married to a South African. She hadn’t seen her parents in two years and was shocked to learn that this meeting might have led to him being postponed.

“When I heard the news on the radio, my heart ‘stopped’ first thing in the morning. Tickets are really expensive, all options. It’s a big financial and emotional investment too. But she, who hopes to be able to get on a plane next week, also expressed her anger at the restrictions. imposed on travelers from South Africa.

“It’s not a different kind of South African, you don’t know where it started. Since the beginning of this pandemic, South Africa has done a great job with scientists. So what (South African President) Cyril Ramaphosa said yesterday is what we all feel. We feel Extremely unfair,” he said.

• UN Secretary-General expresses concern over South Africa’s isolation over Omicron

Unlike the two, who already live in the country, military policeman Thomaz Augusto Santana França arrived in South Africa on November 21. He came for a walk, and plans to stay for two weeks. And it was scheduled to return next Sunday (5) by Emirates Airlines. But the flight was also cancelled. He said he had received an e-mail from the airline, but it “did not provide any justification for canceling or anticipating new boarding dates.”

The Brazilian said the news about the new replacement didn’t scare him at first. The discovery of the variant was something that added to studies of the virus. What bothers me is the fact that other countries did not understand the situation and closed their borders, which hindered our return to our country of origin. This has caused inconvenience and anxiety.

The Brazilian Embassy in Pretoria and the Brazilian Consulate General in Cape Town have issued a note to this effect 230 Brazilians are detained here in South Africa. More than half (70%) are in Cape Town. He emphasized that Brazilians and residents of Brazil can, yes, return to the country and there is no reason why airlines should not leave them. Brazilian restrictions are imposed on foreigners who have been here in the last 14 days. The embassy also said it was doing everything possible to facilitate the boarding of Brazilians who had already bought tickets.

Estimates that South Africa will – again – record about 10,000 new cases per day in the next few days confirm what was already expected: the fourth wave of infections in the country is approaching. This prediction was made by infectious disease specialist Salim Abdel Karim at Monday’s morning press conference (29) with Health Minister Joe Bahla and other specialists.

The report released late on Monday recorded 2,273 new cases and 25 deaths in South Africa alone, causing alarm. President Cyril Ramaphosa, in a televised statement on Sunday evening, urged countries to re-allow flights between southern African countries.