By Joseph B.A. Marzan
Boracay Island will reopen on June 16, 2020 to tourists from Western Visayas, the Boracay Inter-Agency Task Force said Thursday.
The task force, which is composed of the Departments of Tourism, Environment and Natural Resources, and Interior and Local Government, and local governments of Aklan province and Malay town, met in Boracay Island on Thursday to discuss the reopening.
Department and Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Secretary and BIATF chair Roy Cimatu said that the municipal council of Malay, Aklan filed a resolution urging the task force to allow reopening of the island to tourists from Aklan, Antique, Capiz, Iloilo, Guimaras, and Negros Occidental.
“The task force approved the recommendation of the LGU (local government unit) for the opening of Boracay for tourism effective June 16 this year. That will only be applicable for tourists coming from the Western Visayas,” Cimatu said in a joint briefing with the tourism department.
Secretary Eduardo Año of Department of Interior and Local Government said that since Aklan had a low number of COVID-19 cases, the island may reopen to tourism sooner.
“Aklan has had zero [COVID-19] cases for a long time. Tourism activities are already allowed under the MGCQ. We are seeing positive developments here in Aklan where we can restart tourism domestically, and hopefully soon, internationally once again,” Año said.
Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said that while they are excited to re-open the island for domestic tourism, they will comply with the issuances from Aklan Governor Florencio Miraflores and Malay Acting Mayor Frolibar Bautista.
Puyat said they are only waiting for the letter of intent from tourism establishments, and are ready to give clearance for hotels in the island to operate again.
“We are excited to see the re-opening of Boracay to domestic tourism, but Governor Florencio Miraflores and Mayor Frolibar Bautista want this to be done gradually, for Western Visayas first. Boracay has been COVID-free for more than a month now. They are very ready with their protocol so we are quite excited,” Puyat said.
Puyat also said that protocols will be in place to ensure that the island remains COVID-free.
“When they book in the hotel, they will have to fill up a health declaration form, so they will already have a QR Code which they will present when they arrive in Boracay. There will also be temperature scanning upon their arrival, and we will push for them to observe physical distancing and wearing of masks,” she said.
The entire Western Visayas region, including Boracay Island, is currently under Modified General Community Quarantine (MGCQ) under June 15.
The island was closed under the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) from March 19 to May 30 as imposed by the Malay local government unit (LGU) due to the rising numbers of confirmed COVID-19 cases back in March.
Puyat said that all MGCQ rules “will apply,” as activities are set to resume on the island.
The Boracay IATF said minimum health standards will be observed on the island such as the “no face mask, no entry” policy and physical distancing.
The local government unit will also set the curfew guidelines.
Activities involving close physical contact will be prohibited, although the IATF has yet to specify what these activities are. There are also no specifics about the number of tourists to be allowed in the area.
Tourism in the world-class island was put to a halt mid-March due to travel restrictions to contain COVID-19.
The task force said no COVID-19 cases have been reported in Boracay for a month.
Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said in an online forum in Metro Manila on Wednesday that the task force will visit the island to reassess its reopening to tourists.
The task force checked the health protocols in place to determine if the country’s top tourist destination is ready to accept local tourists.
Tourism in Boracay Island was put to a halt mid-March 2020 due to travel restrictions to contain the spread of COVID-19.
Based on the Department of Health Western Visayas Center for Health Development, there are a total of 136 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the region.
On Wednesday, Aklan Gov. Florencio Miraflores said they are preparing for the reopening of Boracay Island in July for domestic tourists only, specifically from within Western Visayas.
The provincial government of Aklan is also accrediting tourism establishments like hotels that are compliant with the Department of Tourism (DOT) guidelines. (With reports from CNN PH and Rappler)
