Foreign ministry devising plan for students stranded in Wuhan

Amid mounting concerns about Barbadian students stuck in the Central Chinese city of Wuhan, at the centre of an outbreak of a new strain of coronavirus, Minister of Foreign Affairs Sandra Husbands has repeated an assurance that Government is moving swiftly towards a solution.

But Husbands, while urging Barbadians to have faith in the process, said it was not as simple as swooping in and bringing the students out of the danger zone. She told Barbados TODAY that there were many variables to consider and that her ministry is currently preparing for multiple contingencies.

She said: “It is obvious that parents are going to be anxious, any parent in this situation would love to have a magic wand waved and their children home.

“We are working with them through the process to ensure that we can safeguard their children.”

She further explained that among the critical considerations is transport in and out of the city of Wuhan, in the central Chinese province of Hubei, where three students, two males and a female, have been confined to their university dormitories. The city has been on lockdown since the viral outbreak triggered a global alert.

Minister Husbands said: “If there are no trains or planes, then we can’t get them from there.

“The other thing that we have to consider is how are they going to get food and supplies while they stay indoors to avoid possible infections.

“When they leave we have to consider if they have to be quarantined and determine where would something like that have to take place before they are allowed to travel on somebody’s plane.

“So there are a lot of issues and it is not as straight forward as bringing them home.”

On Tuesday, Barbados TODAY reported that the three students are currently safe from the illness.

“I can tell you that I’m in regular contact with our students in Wuhan and they’re fine so far,” Ambassador to China Francois Jackman told Barbados TODAY from the Barbados embassy in Beijing.

“Rattled but healthy,” he added.

Ambassador Jackman said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had been fully briefed on the student but declined to identify them.

Husbands told Barbados TODAY that her ministry has written to the parents of the students and that they intend to keep them up to date every step of the way.

She said: “We have been in touch with the students every day to make sure that they are well.

“We are liaising with the ministry of foreign affairs in China to see when we can get the students out.

“This process is an ongoing one and Barbados is taking every precaution to ensure that we are instructing our students about how to maintain their safety until such time that we can get them to a different place.”

With regards to travel to China, Husbands noted that while her ministry has not issued a travel advisory, she suggested that it may be prudent for Barbadians to avoid unnecessary travel to the stricken Chinese region.

She said: “Citizens in their own best interest will recognize that they need to make personal decisions and may advise themselves that now may not be the best time to travel to affected regions, especially since the virus has jumped borders and is now in a number of countries.”

colvillemounsey@barbadostoday.bb