WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern postponed her wedding after announcing new COVID-19 restrictions on Jan. 23 after nine cases of omicron mutations were found in a family flying to Auckland for the wedding. body cases. wedding.
The country’s so-called “red environment” to deal with the pandemic includes enhanced measures such as requiring masks and limiting gatherings. These restrictions go into effect on January 24.
Ardern stressed that “red is not a lockdown”, noting that businesses can remain open and people can still visit family and friends and move freely across the country.
“Our plan to manage omicron cases in the early stages is the same as delta, where we will rapidly test, trace contacts and isolate cases and contacts to slow the spread,” Ardern told reporters.
But her own wedding plans were put on hold.
The 41-year-old prime minister plans to tie the knot at the end of January.
“I’ve just joined many other Kiwis who have had a similar experience due to the pandemic, and I’m very sorry to anyone caught in this situation,” she said.
New Zealand is one of the few countries that has avoided an outbreak of the omicron variant, but Ardern acknowledged last week that an outbreak was inevitable given the variant’s high transmissibility.
The country has successfully controlled the spread of the delta variant, with an average of about 20 new cases per day. It has seen an increasing number of people arriving in the country and being placed in mandatory quarantine, infected with omicron.
That has put pressure on the quarantine system and prompted the government to restrict the entry of returning citizens as it decides how to reopen borders, angering many who want to return to New Zealand.
About 93% of New Zealanders aged 12 and over were fully vaccinated and 52% received a booster shot. The country has just started vaccinating children between the ages of 5 and 11.
The family from the Nelson-Marlborough area attended weddings and other events in Auckland in early January, where it was estimated they had reached “over 100 people”, Ardern said.
“This means that the omicron is now circulating in Auckland, and possibly in the Nelson-Marlborough area if not elsewhere,” she added.
Ardern plans to marry her long-term partner Clarke Gayford. They have a 2-year-old daughter, Neve.
In 2018, Ardern became the second elected world leader in modern history to give birth while in office.
