COVID-19 Infection Cases Rise Again, Australian Police Threaten Strong Action Against Anti-lockdown Protests

An illustration of the silence of Australia during the lockdown due to COVID-19. (Wikimedia Commons/Kgbo)

JAKARTA - New South Wales has recorded another spike in cases of COVID-19 infection, while Australian police issued a warning to crack down on anti-lockdown protests.

New South Wales, Australia's most populous state, with the state capital in Sydney, reported 145 new cases on Monday, up from 14 a day earlier amid efforts to contain the Delta variant of COVID-19.

Of particular concern, 51 of those newly diagnosed were active in the community before testing positive, increasing the risk of transmission. Meanwhile, authorities require the figure to be close to zero if the lockdown is to be lifted by July 30.

"Some arrangements may change. We may need to work harder in some areas and let go of some arrangements in other areas," State Prime Minister Gladys Berejiklian said at a news conference.

PM Berejiklian added that he would announce updates regarding the lockdown status in the region he leads in the next few days.

Separately, thousands of people staged a protest against the lockdown in downtown Sydney at the weekend, which drew concern from State Health Chief Kerry Chant and called it sad that it had turned violent amid the pandemic.

New South Wales State Police Commissioner Mick Fuller said around 10,000 people had called the police hotline to report people suspected of violating lockdown orders.

The call to the police was an overwhelming condemnation by the public, not only in terms of their disgust at the protests but at the way police were treated, Fuller said.

"Police are aware of plans for repeated protests and similar behavior "will no longer be tolerated," he stressed.

Illustration of Prahran area, Victoria, Australia. (Wikimedia Commons/Mat Connolley)

Separately, the state of Victoria, which is also under lockdown, reported 11 new cases, though all were quarantined during the time of their infection. Authorities said they would decide the following day whether to lift the restrictions as expected.

Meanwhile, the State of South Australia said it was on track to emerge from a one-week lockdown on Wednesday, having reported one new local case, also in quarantine during their infectious period.

To deal with the current outbreak, the government changed its recommendation to expand the use of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine, because so far only around 16 percent of Australians over 16 have received the full dose.

The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunization (ATAGI) previously restricted the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine to people over 60 years of age, due to the risk of blood clots being very rare in younger people.

Meanwhile, many Australians, including those over 60, are choosing to wait for Pfizer's vaccine, which is limited to those aged 40 to 60 due to supply constraints.

Last weekend, ATAGI recommended that all adults in Sydney receive the AstraZeneca vaccine, considering the benefits outweigh the risks.

The move was backed by lawmakers, with Australia's Finance Minister Josh Frydenberg telling reporters getting vaccinated was the ticket for Kangaroo Country out of the current crisis.

AstraZeneca welcomed the change, saying regulators around the world had issued statements that their COVID-19 vaccines outweighed the risks.

Even though it is struggling with the Delta variant, Australia remains one of the countries with a low number of COVID-19 infection cases. Launching Worldometers, Australia recorded a total of 33,082 cases of infection, 918 deaths, and 29,856 patients declared cured since last year's pandemic.