HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong tested more than 120,000 people for the coronavirus Tuesday at the start of a mass-testing effort that's become another political flash point in the semi-autonomous Chinese territory.
Volunteers stood in lines at some of the more than 100 testing centers, though many residents are distrustful of the resources and staff being provided by China's central government and some have expressed fear DNA could be collected.
The Hong Kong government has dismissed such concerns, and leader Carrie Lam urged the public to see the program in a fair and objective light and appealed to critics to stop discouraging people from being tested since participation is crucial to the program's success.
Priscilla Pun, a sales manager, got tested to give herself peace of mind. “I don’t see any reason not to do it, and this way I can let my family in Canada know that I am safe,” said Pun, who was tested at a center in the eastern Quarry Bay neighborhood.
Others, like Giselle Ming, said she decided to take part to support the Hong Kong government’s initiative even though she was not worried that she might be a carrier of the coronavirus. “In this bad situation of the coronavirus, I hope I can do something to help the society,” she said.
“This large-scale universal community testing program is beneficial to fighting the epidemic and beneficial to our society. It will also help Hong Kong come out of the pandemic unscathed and is conducive to the resumption of daily activities,” Lam said at her weekly news conference.
More than 650,000 people in the city of 7.5 million signed up in advance for the program, which will last at least a week. It is aimed at identifying silent carriers of the virus — those without symptoms — who could be spreading the disease.
On Tuesday, 126,000 people were tested, according to government officials. Only 10% of people who registered for tests did not turn up.
The government expects 5 million people will take part in the program, which could be extended to two weeks depending on demand.
Hong Kong's worst outbreak in early July was blamed in part on an exemption from quarantine requirements for airline staff, truck drivers from mainland China and sailors on cargo ships.
At its peak, Hong Kong recorded more than 100 locally transmitted cases a day, after going weeks without any in June.
The outbreak has slowed, with the city reporting just nine cases on Monday, the first time in two weeks that daily infections had fallen to single digits. However, the government and some experts say that community testing can help detect asymptomatic carriers to further stop the spread of the virus.