Taiwan closes its borders to SARS

THE government of Taiwan yesterday took the harshest measures yet seen to stop the spread of SARS to its soil.

The island of 21 million people closed its borders to all visitors from the four countries worst affected by the disease - Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore and mainland China.

Hong Kong, Taiwan’s largest trading partner, immediately asked for the measure to be reconsidered. It came only days after officials in Toronto, Canada, protested bitterly against the World Health Organisation advising travellers to avoid the city.

Taiwan’s measure appeared to reflect a rising sense of panic. The island reported its first death from the disease yesterday, of a man infected by his brother returning from a trip to Hong Kong.

A 48-year-old man quarantined in Taipei’s Ho Ping hospital, meanwhile, hanged himself after being told his family might have SARS.

An outbreak at the hospital helped to drive Taiwan’s probable cases from 33 to 55. Local television yesterday showed a woman in a mask and hospital gown trying to throw herself from a window before being pulled back in.

"Fighting the epidemic is like fighting a war. We face an invisible enemy," the Taiwanese premier, Yu Shyi-kun, told a news conference where he asked for public support for the restrictions.

Violators trying to enter Taiwan from the four countries could face two years’ jail.

Analysts said the curbs could jeopardise Taiwan’s economy, as its core hi-tech industry has moved many factories to China to exploit lower costs. Before the SARS outbreak, about 10,000 people travelled to Taiwan from China each day.

Asia has borne the brunt of the nearly 5,000 known SARS cases worldwide.