Thailand bans entry from 8 African countries over COVID Omicron variant

BANGKOK—Thailand said on Saturday it would ban the entry of people traveling from 8 African countries it designated as high risk for the new Omicron variant of COVID-19.

Starting in December, travel from Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe, will be prohibited, senior health official Opas Karnkawinpong told a news conference.

Thailand will not allow travelers from these countries to register to travel to Thailand starting on Saturday, he said.

The announcement came as other countries in Asia tighten borders over worries about the B 1.1.529 variant. The World Health Organization designated it the latest "variant of concern," saying it may spread more quickly than other forms.

"We have notified airlines and these countries," Opas said adding that travelers from other African countries will not be allowed to use the country's quarantine-free travel scheme for vaccinated travelers. (Reporting by Chayut Setboonsarng; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore and William Mallard)

-reuters-

Lockdowns and entry bans imposed around the world to fight coronavirus

WASHINGTON/SHANGHAI/MADRID - France and Spain joined Italy in imposing lockdowns on tens of millions of people, Australia ordered self-isolation of arriving foreigners and other countries extended entry bans as the world sought to contain the spreading coronavirus.

Panic buying in Australia, the United States and Britain saw leaders appeal for calm over the virus that has infected over 156,000 people globally and killed more than 5,800.

Several countries imposed bans on mass gathering, shuttered sporting, cultural and religious events, while medical experts urged people to practice "social distancing" to curb the spread.

Austria's chancellor urged people to self-isolate and announced bans on gatherings of more than 5 people and further limits on who can enter the country.

All of Pope Francis' Easter services next month will be held without the faithful attending, the Vatican said on Sunday, in a step believed to be unprecedented in modern times.

The services, 4 days of major events from Holy Thursday to Easter Sunday, usually draw tens of thousands of people to sites in Rome and in the Vatican.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said from midnight Sunday international travellers arriving in the country would need to isolate themselves for 14 days, and foreign cruise ships would be banned for 30 days, given a rise in imported cases.

Australia's latest restrictions mirror those announced by neighboring New Zealand on Saturday.

TRAVEL BANS, AIRLINE CUTBACKS

Donald Trump tested negative for the coronavirus, his doctor said on Saturday, as the US president extended his country's travel ban to Britain and Ireland.

Last week, Trump had met a Brazilian delegation in which at least one member has since been tested positive.

Travel restrictions and bans, and a plunge in global air travel, saw further airline cutbacks, with American Airlines Inc planning to cut 75 percent of international flights through May 6 and ground nearly all its widebody fleet.

China tightened checks on international travellers arriving at Beijing airport on Sunday, after the number of imported new coronavirus infections surpassed locally transmitted cases for a second day in a row.

Anyone arriving to Beijing from abroad will be transferred directly to a central quarantine facility for 14 days for observation starting March 16, a city government official said.

China, where the epidemic began in December, appears to now face a greater threat of new infections from outside its borders as it continues to slow the spread of the virus domestically.

China has reported 80,984 cases and 3,203 deaths. The country imposed draconian containment policies from January, locking down several major cities.

LOCKDOWNS, STAY HOME

Spain put its 47 million inhabitants under partial lockdown on Saturday as part of a 15-day state of emergency to combat the epidemic in Europe's second worst-affected country after Italy.

Streets in Madrid and Barcelona were deserted on Sunday. All major newspapers carried a front-page wrapper emblazoned with a government-promoted slogan: "Together we'll stop this virus."

Spain has had 193 deaths from the virus and 6,250 cases so far, public broadcaster TVE said on Sunday.

France will shut shops, restaurants and entertainment facilities from Sunday with its 67 million people were told to stay home after confirmed infections doubled in 72 hours.

French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said the government had no other option after the public health authority said 91 people had died in France and almost 4,500 were now infected.

"We must absolutely limit our movements," he said.

However, French local elections went ahead.

"I am going to vote and keep living my life no matter what. I am not scared of the virus," said a 60-year-old voter, who asked to be identified only as Martine, at a Paris polling station.

Britain is preparing to ban mass gatherings and could isolate people aged over 70 for up to 4 months as part of plans to tackle coronavirus, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said.

Argentina banned entry to non-residents who have been to any country highly affected by coronavirus in the last 14 days, while Colombia said it would expel four Europeans for violating compulsory quarantine protocols, hours after closing its border with Venezuela.

Starting Sunday, South Korea began to subject visitors from France, Germany, Britain, Spain and the Netherlands to stricter border checks, after imposing similar rules for China, Italy and Iran which have had major outbreaks.

Visitors from those countries now need to download an app to report whether they have symptoms. South Korea has been testing hundreds of thousands of people and tracking potential carriers using cell phone and satellite technology.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Virus sparks wild stock market swings

TOKYO - Global stock markets suffered wild swings on Friday over the spiralling coronavirus crisis that has killed nearly 5,000 people and disrupted sport, schools and society across the planet.

The virus has affected all walks of life, not sparing sports stars, celebrities or world leaders, with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announcing he was in self-imposed quarantine after his wife tested positive.

It has also forced the sealing off of entire countries, draconian government measures not seen in peacetime, and the scrapping of global sporting and cultural events from Broadway to basketball.

Japan's stock market plunged more than 10 percent at its low on Friday, following the worst day on Wall Street since the crash of 1987 as traders scrambled to sell everything on fears the virus will catapult the world into a deep recession.

But the Nikkei rallied to close 6 percent down on huge volatility as traders weighed emergency big-bang measures by central banks in the United States and eurozone, and government fiscal stimulus packages.

An extraordinary day of trade in Australia saw the main stock market close higher by four percent after falling by eight percent at one point, with some players apparently seeing buying opportunities in the carnage.

Forager Funds' Steve Johnson described the day's trade as "completely and utterly nuts".

'Worst in a century'

The human toll also continued to rise, with nearly 131,500 people infected across 116 countries and territories, and 4,925 dead, according to an AFP tally.

The virus, which first emerged in China in December, has quickly spread around the world even as cases in Asia have leveled out in recent days.

China claimed "the peak" of the pandemic had passed its shores, but infections and deaths jumped dramatically in Italy, Spain and Iran, which announced 75 new deaths on Thursday.

French President Emmanuel Macron said it was "the worst health crisis in France in a century" as he ordered schools and universities closed "until further notice" -- following similar moves in many other countries.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson issued a grim warning to the public over the virus, which has predominantly killed the elderly and other people with already weakened immune systems.

"More families, many more families are going to lose loved ones before their time," Johnson said, as he urged people with symptoms to stay at home.

With countries imposing travel bans -- Australia was the latest to recommend citizens reconsider foreign travel -- global tourism has ground to a halt, and many people have been left stranded as dream holidays turned to nightmares.

Betul Akcagoz, a tourist from Turkey on holiday in Vienna, told AFP: "So bad. There is nothing to do. I hope we can go back to Turkey because in our country, they said they might close the borders too."

"I hope they won't because we don't want to be stuck here."

The chaos extended to Europe's airports, where confused passengers scrambled to redraw their plans after US President Donald Trump this week banned all travellers from mainland Europe for the next 30 days.

"We just got off our plane and we're going to go straight back -- we can't believe it," said 29-year-old Tiara Streng, queuing with three friends at London's Heathrow Airport for a return flight to Colorado.

'A little bit crazy'

The virus has cut a swathe through sporting events around the planet.

The NBA basketball league in the United States was this week shut down for 30 days.

The season-opening Australian Grand Prix became the latest high-profile casualty on Friday, with the event cancelled just hours before the action was due to start after a McLaren team member tested positive.

In England, Chelsea's players and coaching staff were ordered into isolation as Callum Hudson-Odoi became the first Premier League player confirmed positive, as doubts swirled over the rest of the season.

The virus has placed a major question mark over the "Greatest Show on Earth", the Tokyo Olympics, with Trump saying "maybe they postpone it for a year."

But Japan's Olympic minister said neither organizers in Tokyo nor the International Olympic Committee were thinking "at all" about delaying or cancelling the Games, due to open on July 24.

With authorities warning large gatherings should be avoided during the outbreak that the WHO has officially classified as a pandemic -- entertainment venues like Disneyland have been closed and the curtain this week also came down on Broadway.

Ted Levitt, a 63-year-old pensioner came to New York from Maryland with his daughter to watch "Hamilton" and thought the measures were overblown as he learned on Thursday the show was cancelled.

"I think it's not as bad as they say but I guess you've got to stop it somehow. I think everybody's getting a little bit crazy," he told AFP.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Airline stocks nosedive as US travel ban hits EU travel sector

PARIS - Europe's travel sector reacted with dismay Thursday to a US-imposed trans-Atlantic travel ban that sent the share price of major airlines into free fall.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) warned that airlines needed "emergency measures" after President Donald Trump imposed the ban to stem the spread of coronavirus.

Air France stock lost almost 18 percent at the Paris opening bell, before recovering to trade five percent lower in mid-afternoon exchanges.

Lufthansa shares, quoted in Frankfurt, were off by almost nine percent.

The US is not banning passengers from Britain, but shares in British Airways' parent company IAG still slumped more than 10 percent, while EasyJet lost over nine percent.

'KICKNG A MAN'

"Trump is simply kicking a man when he's down," according to an EU diplomat in Brussels who called the ban "erratic."

Trump said the US would not allow travelers from the EU's Schengen border-free zone into the country for 30 days, calling the move an "aggressive" effort to contain the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus.

The decision does not affect visitors from Britain and Ireland, or US citizens returning from Europe.

Key US companies were hit even harder than their European counterparts, with the sector suffering its worst downturn since the September 11, 2001 attacks.

Boeing, already reeling from problems with the 737 MAX jet, lost 14 percent by the time trading was suspended Thursday, which added to its 18 percent drop a day earlier.

Shares in United Airlines shed nearly 15 percent on Wall Street before trading was suspended after the S&P 500 index lost seven percent.

Global markets have lost a combined $11.3 trillion in value since a peak on February 19, and $4.5 trillion this week alone.

American Airlines and Delta plunged by double-digit percentages.

'HAMMER BLOW'

"The travel ban is another hammer blow for the airlines" that "were getting crucified by the reduction in tourism and business travel in the last month," said economist Charlie Robertson at Renaissance Capital in London.

Peter Elbers, chief executive of the Dutch carrier KLM, told public television NOS: "It is undeniable that the consequences are extremely heavy."

Fears that other countries might follow the US example "are paralyzing the market," said Timo Emden of Emden Research.

French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told a news conference: "Trump's announcement is bad news for all airlines."

Le Maire "regretted" a decision "which will have a very strong impact on tourism and a very strong impact on companies in general."

INEFFECTIVE?

European leaders argue that travel restrictions are ineffective because the virus has now spread almost worldwide, and lament that Trump had not consulted them first.

After speaking with Air France chief executive Benjamin Smith, Le Maire said they would look for ways to "ensure Air France comes through this difficult moment... in the best possible conditions."

Airlines are especially vulnerable to a sharp drop in tourism and business travel.

Italy, the worst hit country in Europe so far, has quarantined its entire population of 60 million, the US has advised citizens against all foreign travel, and tourist magnets like Paris are bracing for hard times.

Service sector businesses have been pummelled and industrial supply lines are also under pressure, further dampening economic activity.

The ban "will create enormous cash-flow pressures for airlines," IATA head Alexandre de Juniac said. "Airlines will need emergency measures to get through this crisis."

On March 5, IATA estimated that the crisis could wipe out some $113 billion in airline industry, but the organization stressed that that estimate did not include the severe measures the US and other governments, including Israel, Kuwait and Spain, have since put in place.

Amsterdam-Schiphol Airport, one of Europe's biggest hubs, reported Thursday a 20-percent drop in passengers in the first week in March and prepared to work at reduced capacity.

"If all flights to and from the United States were canceled, this percentage would rise to 30 percent," the airport statement said.

Agence France-Presse

S. Korea 'very grave,' Moon says as coronavirus cases approach 1,000

SEOUL, South Korea – The novel coronavirus outbreak in South Korea is "very grave," President Moon Jae-in said Tuesday as he visited its epicenter while the country's total number of cases approached 1,000.

The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) confirmed 144 new infections, taking the tally to 977, the largest national total anywhere outside China, where the virus first emerged.

Scores of events have been cancelled or postponed as the outbreak has spread in the world's 12th largest economy, from K-pop concerts to the start of the K-league football season, with casualties on Tuesday including parliamentary sessions and the World Team Table Tennis championships.

More than 80 percent of the infections have been in South Korea's fourth-largest city Daegu and neighboring North Gyeongsang province.

"The situation is very grave," President Moon Jae-in said on a visit to Daegu, wearing the uniform of a government emergency official and vowing full government support.

"We will achieve a victory in the fight against this virus," he added. 

The streets of Daegu -- which has a population of 2.5 million -- have been largely deserted for days, apart from long queues at the few shops with masks for sale.

Authorities urged the public to exercise extra caution, advising citizens to stay home if they have a fever or respiratory symptoms.

South Korea's parliament cancelled sessions Tuesday as it closed for cleaning after confirmation a person with the coronavirus had attended a meeting last week. 

The country's flag carrier Korean Air also reported a cabin crew member had tested positive, without giving details.

And, the US hinted at scaling back joint military exercises, with Defense Secretary Mark Esper telling reporters in Washington the two allies' militaries were "looking at scaling back the command post training due to concerns about the coronavirus."

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advised travelers to "avoid all nonessential travel" to South Korea.

Hong Kong has said it would not allow arrivals from South Korea other than returning residents, while a Mongolian ban on flights to and from the South came into force Tuesday.

Organizers of the World Team Table Tennis championship, due to be held in Busan in March, said new dates in June had been "provisionally reserved."

The Korean Basketball League said it would hold matches behind closed doors "until the situation improves."

GOVERNMENT LIST

Three more people had died, the KCDC said, taking the toll to 10. But the case numbers it announced represented the smallest daily increase for four days.

South Korea has an advanced medical system, a free press and a strong culture of public accountability, and observers say that its health statistics can be treated with confidence.

Most of the country's infections are linked to the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, an entity often accused of being a cult.

A 61-year-old female member developed a fever on February 10, but attended at least four church services in Daegu before being diagnosed.

KCDC director Jung Eun-kyeong advised Shincheonji followers to refrain from going outside "as much as possible."

With public criticism growing, Shincheonji's founder Lee Man-hee said the group would provide the government a list of all its members to have them tested for the virus.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Chinese gymnasts pull out of World Cup in Australia due to coronavirus travel ban

MELBOURNE - The Chinese gymnastics team entered into next week's World Cup in Melbourne has pulled out due to Australian government travel restrictions put in place to limit the coronavirus outbreak, organizers said Saturday.

The restrictions on foreign nationals traveling from China were introduced in early February and extended for another week on Thursday.

The extension effectively rules out China's participation at the Feb. 20 to 23 World Cup, which offers qualifying points for this year's Tokyo Olympics.

"It has been a very challenging few weeks for us all, but none more so than for the Chinese gymnasts and officials who have been training and preparing to come to Melbourne," Gymnastics Australia CEO Kitty Chiller said in a statement.

"I have been in regular contact with the Chinese Gymnastics Association and its President, who informs me all of their delegation are well and have shown no sign of infection."

"Despite this, we all have to respect the Australian Government's travel restrictions."

Among the 12 Chinese entries listed on the World Cup's website are 4-time world champion Zhang Chenglong, who claimed the men's team gold at the 2012 London Olympics and bronze at the Rio Games.

Zhang's Rio teammates You Hao and Liu Yang will also miss out, along with Xiao Ruoteng, a former men's all-around world champion.

Chinese athletes in other sports have also suffered disruptions to Olympic preparations.

The entire Chinese women's soccer team and staff were confined to a Brisbane hotel for nearly 2 weeks due to quarantine restrictions after arriving in Australia in late-January for an Olympic qualifying tournament.

The coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak has killed more than 1,500 people, mostly in China's central Hubei province. Confirmed infections have risen above 66,000.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Coronavirus could cost Australian universities 'billions'

SYDNEY - The coronavirus outbreak could deliver a painful multi-billion-dollar hit to Australian universities, as high-paying Chinese students are forced to defer their studies, economists warned Thursday.

Top universities stand to lose around US$2 billion (Aus$3 billion) in fees alone, according to preliminary estimates from analysts at Standard & Poor's.

Under open-ended travel restrictions imposed by the government in a bid to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, non-Australian citizens or permanent residents who have been in China since Feb. 1 are not allowed into Australia.

The virus's outbreak came in between Australia's academic years -- which begin in February -- and as many of the country's roughly 165,000 Chinese university students had returned home for the Lunar New Year.

"Our calculation is one of higher-education fee revenues only, and excludes the broader economic contribution from students to accommodation, tourism, and domestic consumption of goods and services," S&P said in a report.

Foreign students are a vital income stream for Australian universities and one that has grown exponentially in recent years.

Australia is now 1 of the top 3 destinations for foreign students worldwide.

Student representatives told AFP that many of those students have not been able to return in time to start this semester and fear missing the whole year because of the way courses are constructed.

Universities have offered to defer placements and reimburse tuition fees, but many are also trying to buy time.

The University of Sydney has extended the last date students have to be on campus to March 30 -- more than a month after classes were due to begin -- and is trying to arrange for remote teaching.

Australia's top universities are expected to be disproportionately hit, but they should be able to absorb the blow, at least temporarily.

"We believe they have some buffer in free cash, leverage, and operating margin ratios to absorb a temporary shock to revenues," S&P said. 

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Hawaii urges U.S. Supreme Court to reject Trump's travel ban

WASHINGTON - The state of Hawaii on Tuesday urged the U.S. Supreme Court not to allow President Donald Trump's latest travel ban that would bar entry of people from six Muslim-majority countries to go into full effect after it was partially blocked by lower courts.

Lawyers for the Democratic-governed state, which filed a legal challenge to the ban, were responding to the Trump administration's request last week asking the conservative-majority court to allow the ban to go into effect completely.

Hawaii's lawyers wrote that the latest ban, Trump's third, discriminates against Muslims in violation of the U.S. Constitution and is not permissible under immigration laws.

On Nov. 13, the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals allowed the ban to go partly into effect, lifting part of a district court judge's nationwide injunction.

The Republican president's ban was announced on Sept. 24 and replaced two previous versions that had been impeded by federal courts.

The ban currently applies to people from Iran, Libya, Syria, Yemen, Somalia and Chad who do not have connections to the United States. Those with family relationships and other formal connections with the United States, such as through a university, can enter the country.

In a separate case in Maryland spearheaded by the American Civil Liberties Union, a federal judge partly blocked the ban. The administration has also asked the Supreme Court for that injunction to be lifted.

The ban also covers people from North Korea and certain government officials from Venezuela, and lower courts have allowed those provisions to go into effect.

Trump has said the travel ban is needed to protect the United States from terrorism by Muslim militants. As a candidate, Trump had promised "a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States."

source: news.abs-cbn.com

A Day Without Immigrants: Thousands skip work, school in anti-Trump protest

DETROIT/SAN DIEGO - Businesses shut their doors, students skipped class and thousands of demonstrators took to the streets in cities across the United States on Thursday to protest President Donald Trump's immigration policies.

Activists called "A Day Without Immigrants" to highlight the importance of the foreign-born, who account for 13 percent of the U.S. population, or more than 40 million naturalized American citizens.

Trump campaigned against the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants, playing on fears of violent crime while promising to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexican border and stop potential terrorists from entering the country.

While the number of participants in Thursday's protests could not be determined, many sympathetic business owners closed shop and working-class immigrants forwent pay for the day.

"I told my English teacher that I wasn't going to school, and she said she understood," said Rosa Castro, a 13-year-old U.S. citizen in Detroit, who marched with her 26-year-old sister, one of several undocumented family members whose future she is concerned about.

Since taking office last month, the Republican president has signed an executive order temporarily banning entry to the United States by travelers from seven Muslim-majority countries and all refugees. That order was put on hold by federal courts.

Immigrant rights groups have also expressed alarm after federal raids last week rounded up more than 680 people suspected of being in the country illegally.

In San Diego's Logan Heights neighborhood, a 44-year-old undocumented business owner who identified herself only as Lucia for fear of deportation told Reuters she closed her nutrition shop for the day, costing her $200.

"Our community is frightened and cannot speak out," she said. "Things are very bad for us with the new president."

 Advocates have called attention to cases such as one in El Paso, Texas, where federal agents arrested a transgender woman as she left a courthouse where she was seeking a protective order for domestic violence.

Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe wrote Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly to express concern over immigration enforcement in his state, citing an NBC Washington report that agents arrested people outside a church that operates as a shelter from the cold.

Sympathy marches and rallies were held in cities including Raleigh, North Carolina, and Austin, Texas. Thousands joined demonstrations in Chicago and Detroit.

In the Los Angeles Fashion District - comprising some 4,000 apparel outlets, showrooms and manufacturers covering about 100 blocks of downtown - about half the shops in the area's retail core were closed, along with about 40 percent of one of the large flower markets in the area, said district spokeswoman Ariana Gomez.

A Southern California grocery chain, Northgate Gonzalez Markets, said it gave employees at 41 stores and the corporate headquarters permission to use paid personal time off to participate.

In Washington, more than 50 restaurants were closed, including high-end eateries.

"As far as I'm aware, all of our immigrant employees chose to take the day off," said Ruth Gresser, 57, who owns four pizza restaurants in the District of Columbia area. "We have three relative novices and an old lady making pizza," she said, referring to herself.

At the Pentagon, about half a dozen food outlets were forced to close after staff members joined the protest, a Defense Department spokesman said.

The National Restaurant Association criticized the walkouts, saying in a statement that the organizers "disrupt the workplaces of hard-working Americans who are trying to provide for their families."

In Austin, hundreds chanting "Say it loud, say it clear, immigrants are welcome here" marched from City Hall to the State Capitol, where lawmakers in the Republican-controlled body are considering a measure to punish sanctuary cities that shield immigrants from federal agents.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Trump says considering 'brand new' immigration order

WASHINGTON, United States – US President Donald Trump said Friday he is considering drafting a new order to ban migrants from majority-Muslim nations after his initial decree fell afoul of the law.

Insisting that he has the law on his side despite two defeats in federal court in quick succession, Trump said security concerns may necessitate a quicker response than legal channels would allow.

"The unfortunate part is that it takes time statutorily, but we will win that battle. We also have a lot of other options, including just filing a brand new order," he said, adding that any action would not come before next week.

The statement represents an embarrassing climbdown for Trump, who has insisted that the order was well drafted and who has nevertheless vowed to fight on in the courts.

"We need speed for reasons of security, so it very well could be," Trump said when asked if his plan was to have a new measure drafted.

Trump said Friday at a joint press conference with visiting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe that as president, he has learned of "tremendous threats to our country."

"We'll be going forward and continuing to do things to make our country safe. It will happen rapidly," he told reporters.

"We will not allow people into our country who are looking to do harm," he said. "We will allow lots of people into our country that will love our people and do good for our country."

'Whatever is necessary'

Trump's executive order issued in late January summarily denied entry to all refugees for 120 days, and travelers from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen for 90 days. Refugees from Syria were blocked indefinitely.

The White House has not provided any evidence to support Trump's view that a ban on travelers from the seven countries was urgently needed.

An appellate court decided unanimously on Thursday to maintain a block on Trump's order put in place by a lower court judge a week before.

The debacle has raised questions about the competence of Trump's White House in working through the practical and legal implications of the order.

The property mogul-turned-president was forced to sack the acting attorney general -- an Obama administration holdover -- after she refused to defend the order.

After first suggesting a quick appeal to the Supreme Court was off the table, US officials reversed course, insisting a legal challenge had not been dropped, including a possible motion to the high court.

"We're keeping all our options open," one official said.

Nevertheless, an appeal on the temporary freeze in the lower courts now seems unlikely.

Earlier Friday, Trump vowed to do "whatever is necessary to keep our country safe."

"We'll be doing something very rapidly having to do with additional security for our country. You'll be seeing that sometime next week," the president said.

"In addition we will continue to go through the court process, and have no doubt we'll win that particular case," he said.

'Disgraceful'

The measure -- given with no notice -- set off detentions of incoming travelers, protests at airports and international condemnation until a federal judge in Seattle stepped in and suspended the order a week later.

In upholding the suspension, the US court of appeals in San Francisco said Thursday the government had provided no evidence that any alien from the countries named in the order had carried out a terrorist attack on US soil.

"We hold that the government has not shown a likelihood of success on the merits of its appeal, nor has it shown that failure to enter a stay would cause irreparable injury," the three-judge appellate panel ruled.

Trump's initial reaction came minutes later on Twitter: "SEE YOU IN COURT, THE SECURITY OF OUR NATION IS AT STAKE!"

He followed up early Friday with a tweet calling the court's ruling "a disgraceful decision!"

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Fil-Am lawyers oppose, act upon Trump travel ban

NEW YORK - President Donald Trump’s executive order, which bans citizens from seven predominantly Muslim nations, has become an issue within the Filipino American community especially since Trump has mentioned the Philippines as a concern during his election campaign.

“I think it’s clear at this point that it’s highly unlikely that the travel ban will be expanded to include the Philippines,” said Fil-Am Atty. Rio Guerrero. “In all likelihood, they would probably wait to see how this all plays out before the court system and probably the Supreme Court, before they were to issue any new travel ban, or to try to expand the existing one obviously.”

The National Filipino American Lawyers Association, or NFALA, a three-year old organization with about 700 lawyer members across the United States, opposes the president’s executive order, which they say promotes hostility toward immigrants and refugees.

The organization has mobilized efforts to support the needs of affected individuals.

“We don’t want any groups being singled out. This is a country where we’ve always welcomed immigrants,” said Atty. Jhanice Domingo, President of NFALA. “We’re asking attorneys and people in the US to speak up and oppose this travel ban. We’re asking immigration attorneys to help out.”

Its local affiliate, the Filipino American Lawyers Association of New York, has been volunteering at different airports, disseminating information on their availability to those who may be affected by the travel ban.

Lawyers urge the community to remain vigilant not only on the issue of immigration, but on other issues as well.

They assure the community that they will advocate for citizens' rights.

“Lawyers will defend our country. We will defend the freedoms and the liberties of the people here in the United States, both the documented and the undocumented, fighting for the rights of individuals, and their families,” said Guerrero.

Read more on Balitang America.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

U.S. court denies request to immediately restore travel ban

WASHINGTON -- A U.S. appeal court late on Saturday denied a request from the U.S. Department of Justice to immediately restore a immigration order from President Donald Trump barring citizens from seven mainly Muslim countries and temporarily banning refugees.

The court ruling dealt a further setback to Trump, who has denounced the judge in the state of Washington who blocked his January 27 order on Friday. In tweets and comments to reporters, the President has insisted he will get the ban reinstated.

Trump says the temporary immigration restrictions on citizens from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen, and on all refugees, are necessary to protect the United States from Islamist militants. Critics say they are unjustified and discriminatory.

The judge's order and the appeal ruling have created what may be a short-lived opportunity for travelers from the seven affected countries to get into the United States while the legal uncertainty continues.

In a brief order, the appeals court said the government's request for an immediate administrative stay on the Washington judge's decision had been denied. It was awaiting further submissions from Washington and Minnesota states on Sunday, and from the government on Monday.

The government's appeal says the decision by judge James Robart in Washington posed an immediate harm to the public, thwarted enforcement of an executive order and "second-guesses the president's national security judgment about the quantum of risk posed by the admission of certain classes of (non-citizens) and the best means of minimizing that risk."

Trump denounced the "so-called" judge in a series of tweets on Saturday and told reporters: "We'll win. For the safety of the country, we'll win."

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Trump: U.S. will win appeal of judge's travel ban order

WASHINGTON/PALM BEACH, Fla - U.S. President Donald Trump said the Justice Department will win an appeal filed late Saturday of a judge's order lifting a travel ban he had imposed on citizens of seven mainly Muslim countries.

"We'll win. For the safety of the country, we'll win," he told reporters at his private Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, shortly after the Justice Department filed a notice that it intends to appeal the order.

Trump's personal attack on U.S. District Judge James Robart in Seattle went too far for some who said the president was undermining an institution designed to check the power of the White House and Congress.

"The opinion of this so-called judge, which essentially takes law-enforcement away from our country, is ridiculous and will be overturned!" Trump said on Twitter early on Saturday.

Trump has said "extreme vetting" of refugees and immigrants is needed to prevent terrorist attacks.

Throughout the day, Trump continued to criticize the decision in tweets. Late Saturday, Trump showed no signs of backing down.

"The judge opens up our country to potential terrorists and others that do not have our best interests at heart. Bad people are very happy!" he tweeted.

As the ban lifted, refugees and thousands of travelers from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen who had been stopped in their tracks last weekend by Trump's executive order scrambled to get flights to quickly enter the United States.

The Justice Department did not say when it would file its appeal with the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals of the ruling made by Robart late on Friday that also lifted Trump's temporary ban imposed on refugee admissions.

The judge appointed by former Republican President George W. Bush questioned the constitutionality of Trump's order.

The three-judge panel that will decide whether to immediately block the ruling includes appointees of George W. Bush and two former Democratic presidents, Jimmy Carter and Barack Obama.

Trump's tweets criticizing the judge's decision could make it tougher for Justice Department attorneys as they seek to defend the executive order in Washington state and other courts, said Jonathan Turley, a law professor at George Washington University, adding that presidents are usually circumspect about commenting on government litigation.

"It's hard for the president to demand that courts respect his inherent authority when he is disrespecting the inherent authority of the judiciary. That certainly tends to poison the well for litigation," Turley said.

U.S. immigration advocacy groups including the American Civil Liberties Union and International Refugee Assistance Project on Saturday in a joint statement urged those with now valid visas from the seven nations "to consider rebooking travel to the United States immediately" because the ruling could be overturned or put on hold. A U.S. State Department email reviewed by Reuters said the department is working to begin admitting refugees including Syrians as soon as Monday.

SEPARATION OF POWERS

It is unusual for a president to attack a member of the judiciary, which the U.S. Constitution designates as a check to the power of the executive branch and Congress. Reached by email Saturday, Robart declined comment on Trump's tweets.

Democratic U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont said in a statement Saturday that Trump's "hostility toward the rule of law is not just embarrassing, it is dangerous. He seems intent on precipitating a constitutional crisis."

"Read the 'so-called' Constitution," tweeted Representative Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence committee.

In an interview with ABC scheduled to air on Sunday, Vice President Mike Pence said he did not think that Trump's criticisms of the judge undermined the separation of powers.

"I think the American people are very accustomed to this president speaking his mind and speaking very straight with them," Pence said, according to an excerpt of the interview.

The court ruling was the first move in what could be months of legal challenges to Trump's push to clamp down on immigration. His order set off chaos last week at airports across the United States where travelers were stranded and thousands of people gathered to protest.

Americans are divided over Trump's order. A Reuters/Ipsos poll this week showed 49 percent favored it while 41 percent did not.

Wes Parker, a retiree from Long Beach, California, held a sign saying "Trump is love" at the Los Angeles International Airport, and said he supported the tighter measures.

"We just have to support the travel pause," said Parker, 62.

"If you were a new president coming in, wouldn't you want what you feel safe with?"

Rights groups, Democrats and U.S. allies have condemned the travel ban as discriminatory. On Saturday, there were protests against the immigrant curb in Washington, New York, Los Angeles and other cities.

At the White House, hundreds of protesters chanted "Donald, Donald can't you see? You're not welcome in D.C."

TRAVELERS MOVE WITH HASTE

The sudden reversal of the ban catapulted would-be immigrants back to airports, with uncertainty over how long the window to enter the United States will remain open.

In Erbil, the capital of the Kurdish region of northern Iraq, Fuad Sharef and his family prepared to fly on Saturday to Istanbul and then New York before starting a new life in Nashville, Tennessee.

"I am very happy that we are going to travel today. Finally, we made it," said Sharef, who was stopped from boarding a New York-bound flight last week.

The Department of Homeland Security said on Saturday it would return to its normal procedures for screening travelers but that the Justice Department would file for an emergency stay of the order "at the earliest possible time."

Some travelers told Reuters they were cautious about the sudden change.

"I will not say if I have hope or not. I wait, watch and then I build my hopes," said Josephine Abu Assaleh, 60, who was stopped from entering the United States after landing in Philadelphia last week with five members of her family.

"We left the matter with the lawyers. When they tell us the decision has been canceled, we will decide whether to go back or not," she told Reuters in Damascus, speaking by telephone.

Virtually all refugees also were barred by Trump's order, upending the lives of thousands of people who have spent years seeking asylum in the United States.

Friday night's court decision sent refugee advocacy and resettlement agencies scrambling to help people in the pipeline.

Iraqi refugee Nizar al-Qassab, 52, told Reuters in Lebanon that his family had been due to travel to the United States for resettlement on Jan. 31. The trip was canceled two days before that and he was now waiting for a phone call from U.N. officials overseeing their case.

"It's in God's hands," he said.

(Additional reporting by Issam Abdullah in Beirut, Dan Levine in Seattle, Alana Wise in New York, Robert Chiarito and Nathan Layne in Chicago, Daina Beth Solomon in Los Angeles, and Julia Edwards Ainsley in Washington; Writing by Roberta Rampton and David Shepardson; Editing by Bill Trott, Mary Milliken, Diane Craft and Nick Macfie)

source: news.abs-cbn.com

US judge blocks Trump immigration order

SEATTLE/BOSTON - A Seattle federal judge on Friday put a nationwide block on U.S. President Donald Trump's week-old executive order that had temporarily barred refugees and nationals from seven countries from entering the United States.

The judge's temporary restraining order represents a major setback for Trump's action, though the White House said late Friday that it believed the ban to be "lawful and appropriate" and that the US Department of Justice would file an emergency appeal.

Still, just hours after the ruling, US Customs and Border Protection told airlines they could board travelers who had been affected by the ban.

Trump's January 27 order caused chaos at airports across the United States last week as some citizens from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen were denied entry. Virtually all refugees were also barred, upending the lives of thousands of people who had spent years seeking asylum in the US.

The State Department said Friday that almost 60,000 visas were suspended in the wake of Trump's order; it was not clear Friday night whether that suspension was automatically revoked or what travelers with such visas might confront at U.S. airports.

While a number of lawsuits have been filed over Trump's action, the Washington state lawsuit was the first to test the broad constitutionality of the executive order. Judge James Robart, a George W. Bush appointee, explicitly made his ruling apply across the country, while other judges facing similar cases have so far issued orders concerning only specific individuals.

The challenge in Seattle was brought by the state of Washington and later joined by the state of Minnesota. The judge ruled that the states have legal standing to sue, which could help Democratic attorneys general take on Trump in court on issues beyond immigration.

Washington's case was based on claims that the state had suffered harm from the travel ban, for example students and faculty at state-funded universities being stranded overseas. Amazon.com and Expedia, both based in Washington state, had supported the lawsuit, asserting that the travel restrictions harmed their businesses.

Tech companies, which rely on talent from around the world, have been increasingly outspoken in their opposition to the Trump administration's anti-immigrant policies.

Judge Robart probed a Justice Department lawyer on what he called the "litany of harms" suffered by Washington state's universities, and also questioned the administration's use of the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States as a justification for the ban.

Robart said no attacks had been carried out on US soil by individuals from the seven countries affected by the travel ban since that assault. For Trump's order to be constitutional, Robart said, it had to be "based in fact, as opposed to fiction."

'OUTRAGEOUS ORDER'

The White House said it would file an appeal as soon as possible.

"At the earliest possible time, the Department of Justice intends to file an emergency stay of this outrageous order and defend the executive order of the president, which we believe is lawful and appropriate," the White House said in a statement.

"The president's order is intended to protect the homeland and he has the constitutional authority and responsibility to protect the American people."

Washington Governor Jay Inslee celebrated the decision as a victory for the state, adding: "No person - not even the president - is above the law."

The judge's decision was welcomed by groups protesting the ban.

"This order demonstrates that federal judges throughout the country are seeing the serious constitutional problems with this order," said Nicholas Espiritu, a staff attorney at the National Immigration Law Center.

Eric Ferrero, Amnesty International USA spokesman, lauded the short-term relief provided by the order but added: "Congress must step in and block this unlawful ban for good."

But the fluid legal situation was illustrated by the fact that Robart's ruling came just hours after a federal judge in Boston declined to extend a temporary restraining order allowing some immigrants into the United States from countries affected by Trump's three-month ban.

A Reuters poll earlier this week indicated that the immigration ban has popular support, with 49 percent of Americans agreeing with the order and 41 percent disagreeing. Some 53 percent of Democrats said they "strongly disagree" with Trump's action while 51 percent of Republicans said they "strongly agree."

At least one company, the ride-hailing giant Uber, was moving quickly Friday night to take advantage of the ruling.

CEO Travis Kalanick, who quit Trump's business advisory council this week in the face of a fierce backlash from Uber customers and the company's many immigrant drivers, said on Twitter: "We have a team of in-house attorneys who've been working night & day to get U.S. resident drivers & stranded families back into country.

"I just chatted with our head of litigation Angela, who's buying a whole bunch of airline tickets ASAP!! #homecoming #fingerscrossed"

FOUR STATES IN COURT

The decision in Washington state came at the end of a day of furious legal activity around the country over the immigration ban. The Trump administration has justified its actions on national security grounds, but opponents have labeled it an unconstitutional order targeting people based on religious beliefs.

In Boston, US District Judge Nathan Gorton expressed skepticism during oral arguments about a civil rights group's claim that Trump's order represented religious discrimination, before declining to extend the restraining order.

US District Judge Leonie Brinkema in Alexandria, Virginia, ordered the federal government to give the state a list by Thursday of "all persons who have been denied entry to or removed from the United States."

The state of Hawaii on Friday also filed a lawsuit alleging that the order is unconstitutional and asking the court to block the order across the country.

(Additional reporting by Mica Rosenberg in New York, Brian Snyder in Boston and Lawrence Hurley, Lesley Wroughton, Julia Edwards and Susan Heavey in Washington; Writing by Jonathan Weber and Kristina Cooke; Editing by Jonathan Oatis, Bill Rigby and Nick Macfie)

source: news.abs-cbn.com

US Customs says airlines can board all visa-holders after judge's ruling

US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has informed US airlines that they can once again board travelers who had been barred by an executive order last week, after it was blocked nationwide on Friday by a federal judge in Seattle, an airline official told Reuters.

In a conference call at around 9 p.m. EST (10 a.m. Saturday in Manila), the US agency told airlines to operate just as they had before the order, which temporarily had stopped refugees and nationals from seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the United States.

Individuals from those states who have proper visas can now board US-bound flights, and airlines are working to update their websites to reflect the change, said the official, who was not authorized to speak publicly.

The judge's temporary restraining order represents a major challenge to US President Donald Trump's action, although his administration could still appeal the ruling and have the policy upheld.

Judge James Robart, a George W. Bush appointee, made his ruling effective immediately on Friday, suggesting that travel restrictions could be lifted straight away. He is expected to issue a full written ruling over the weekend.

CBP and Washington-based trade group Airlines for America did not immediately comment.

(Reporting by Jeffrey Dastin in San Francisco; Editing by Sandra Maler)

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Trump's travel ban has revoked 60,000 visas for now

NEW YORK/WASHINGTON - About 60,000 visas were revoked under U.S. President Donald Trump's executive order temporarily halting immigration from seven Muslim-majority countries, the State Department said on Friday, in one of several government communications clarifying how the order is being rolled out.

The revocation means the government voided travel visas for people trying to enter the United States but the visas could be restored later without a new application, said William Cocks, a spokesman for consular affairs at the State Department.

"We will communicate updates to affected travelers following the 90-day review," he said.

Earlier news reports, citing a government attorney at a federal court hearing, put the figure at more than 100,000 visas.

The government issued over 11 million immigrant and non-immigrant visas in fiscal year 2015, the State Department said.

The immigration executive order signed by Trump a week ago temporarily halted the U.S. refugee program and imposed a 90-day suspension on people traveling from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. Trump said the measures would help protect Americans from terrorist attacks.

Under President Barack Obama, Trump's predecessor, the United States added those seven countries as "countries of concern" under its visa waiver program, effectively toughening U.S. visa procedures for individuals who visited those places during the past five years.

Trump's executive order was at least in part informed by those restrictions. The new president, who took office on Jan. 20, went further by temporarily barring passport holders from those seven countries.

The State Department first issued the guidance about revoking the visas on Jan. 27, the day Trump signed his executive order, according to a memo filed in a court case in Massachusetts.

But confusion about the roll out of the order sparked protests at airports across the country where people had been detained and led to a wave of lawsuits filed by individuals, states and civil rights groups.

To further clarify how the order should be applied, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) sent out a letter to all of its employees on Feb. 2, according to a copy of the memo seen by Reuters.

The memo said the agency was continuing to process all applications and petitions for people inside the United States regardless of their country of origin. It also said all applications for permanent residency and adjustment of status can move forward.

USCIS said they could not discuss internal employee communications.

The Department of Homeland Security had earlier clarified, after some initial back-and-forth, that the order would not apply to green card holders. Also people from the seven countries who hold dual citizenship are allowed to enter the United States on the passport of a non-restricted nation when eligible, according to Feb. 2 guidance posted by U.S. Customs and Border Protection's website.

source: news.abs-cbn.com