People eat in a re- opened restaurant in Phnom Penh. KT/Siv Channa

Prime Minister Hun Sen yesterday, during the launch of the vaccination campaign for children aged five years old at the Peace Palace, said that his decision to reopen the country was based on four factors.

He explained that the first factor is the fact that around two million Cambodian people were vaccinated with the booster dose. As a result of the vaccination campaign, resistance against Covid-19 among the Khmer people is very high, helping to cut down the mortality rate of the pandemic.

Regarding this factor, Mr Hun Sen recommended that people not just count on the vaccines that the government bought for them, they must observe precautions against the pandemic everywhere, and at all times.

The second factor is that the government is strengthening its ability to combat the pandemic, so that it will not become a problem to deal with an outbreak in the country. In addition, new medicines to treat Covid-19 pandemic are being discovered one after another. These medicines are available, to public institutions and the private sector alike, for purchase to treat people.

The third factor is that the government has enough experience in fighting against the Covid-19 including controlling its spread and the practice of preventive measures on a large scale.

The fourth factor is that the majority of Cambodian people now have enough knowledge and education about the pandemic so that they can defend themselves, as well as learn how to live with the pandemic and treat themselves in case they are mildly infected with Covid-19.

CPP lawmaker Hun Many said that the reopening of the country reflects the undeniable success of the government in fighting the Covid-19 pandemic, using highly effective mechanisms.

“I congratulate all our citizens and also take this opportunity to call upon all our citizens to continue respecting the health actions taken by ministries and authorities, because living peacefully depends on our participation,” said Many.

Seng Sary, an independent social and political researcher, told Khmer Times that he supports the government’s initiative to reopen the country. However, he said this initiative could have come two or three months earlier in order for the country’s economy to regain normalcy.

In an interview with Khmer Times for Cross Talk programme last week, Sin Chanserey Vutha, spokesman at the State  Secretariat of Civil Aviation (SSCA), said that there will not be any problem for the Kingdom to reopen the country, particularly its business sector.

Meanwhile, Minister of Tourism Thong Khon on Saturday during a meeting with representatives from Dara Sakor Resort Company, at Dara Sakor Resort in Koh Kong province, recommended the company make efforts to attract more tourists, by expanding its services and providing good quality service at an affordable price for domestic tourists.

Moreover, Khon urged Dara Sakor Resort Company to speed up the construction of the airport in order to start domestic and regional flights, especially connections with the new Siem Reap airport which will be open in January.