Binjari, AU — Indigenous people living in the Northern Territory have been rounded up and brought to a quarantine camp in Howard Springs after testing positive for COVID-19 following a small outbreak in Binjari, according to many observers.
16 kilometers southwest of Katherine, the community has more than 200 residents, many of whom live in close quarters. Despite the controversy, the government has been testing wastewater there for traces of the virus; positive results prompted the mobilization of a response team to offer vaccines and door-to-door testing. They now report a 100 percent first-dose vaccination rate, although many are questioning how much choice was given to people.
The government’s tactic of removing people from their homes and hauling them off to quarantine centers has been criticized around the world. Police Commissioner Jamie Chalker explained that it was a question of practicality, saying: “Wherever we’ve got [residences with] overcrowding, or where it’s just simply not a case where an individual can have access to their own ablutions for example … it does create a limited pool for those to be able to quarantine without going to [Howard Springs].”
He added that they plan to continue with this model. It should be noted that Australia has a total restriction on un-vaccinated travel, so the question is begged on how the Omicron variant has been getting propagated there.
On November 20, hard lockdowns were instituted for those remaining in the area as Chief Minister Michael Gunner said that residents of both Binjari and Rockhole are no longer allowed to leave their homes for the five reasons other Australians may leave for: going to work or school, exercising, caregiving, buying food or supplies, or getting vaccinated. Medical treatment is the only reason they are allowed to leave.
Around 350 residents are currently under orders not to leave their homes. As well as excessive temperatures, some are without power. Several people have been slapped with fines of more than AU$5,000 (roughly US$3,600) after being caught sneaking out of their homes during the night, according to Chalker.
Questions surround whether those brought to quarantine camps went willingly. Deb Aloisi, spokesperson for the Binjari Community Aboriginal Corporation, said the government’s response has left people “frightened.”
“They get scared because the Territory health vehicle comes in and the guys are all gowned up and masked up … and a big shield on their face.”
Border rule changes in the Northern Territory
A dramatic change in border rules has been implemented in the Northern Territory, banning unvaccinated travelers from entering the region except for essential personnel and local residents returning from jurisdictions where the virus is not currently present.
People who are arriving from red zones where the virus is present must be fully vaccinated and will be required to quarantine at home for one week. They must take a rapid antigen test upon arrival and return a negative PCR within 72 hours. Tests must also be performed five, eight, and fourteen days after they have left quarantine, as well as staying away from remote communities and aged care facilities.
Last weekend, thousands of people protested across Australia against the country’s extreme vaccine mandates and other measures. So far, 85 percent of the population has been vaccinated, and the federal and state governments’ emergency restrictions and lockdowns are among the strictest in the world.
And they don’t appear to be working. But the behavior DOES appear to be spreading.