KUALA LUMPUR – Foreign crew members of vessels docked in Malaysian ports will not be allowed to disembark during the current movement control order (MCO) until June 7, the Transport Ministry said amid reports of ships from India not required to undergo a 14-day quarantine.
The ministry said only Malaysians are allowed to leave these vessels and required to observe a 14-day quarantine under certain SOPs.
“Exceptions are made only for Malaysian citizens, who would then be quarantined at a government-designated station under strict procedures as decided by the Health Ministry,” Transport Minister Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong said in a statement.
However, the current SOPs governing shipping activities at ports nationwide allow all vessels, including those originating from India, to not be quarantined at sea, as long as they have permission from MoH to dock.
Other SOPs include:
- Vessels (with crew members) with Covid-19 symptoms onboard as detected by MoH through the Maritime Declaration of Health must undergo a 14-day quarantine;
- All dock workers must use MoH-approved personal protective equipment (PPE) such as masks and disposable latex gloves when working on vessels. Non-dock workers are not allowed to enter any vessel docked at Malaysian ports without MoH approval;
- All cargo operations, on deck or in cargo holds, may be carried out by dock workers (such as for lashing and stevedoring) without interaction with ship crew;
- Ship pilots who are essential in piloting vessels to Malaysian docks must do so based strictly on the SOPs and wearing PPE including face shields and PPE aprons; and,
- Cargo handling on all foreign vessels from all origins in all ports are allowed based on SOPs directed by MoH and according to procedures and permissions by the Marine Department of Malaysia (JLM) and the respective port authority.
Wee said these strategies have been enforced since April 28.
Yesterday, Bernama reported that all ships entering Malaysian waters from India do not need to undergo the 14-day quarantine at sea.
JLM said only vessels with crew members exhibiting Covid-19 symptoms will be made to observe quarantine.
This comes amid worries over the spread of variants of coronavirus originating from India. – The Vibes, May 15, 2021
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