AUSTRALIA LOCKED DOWN

Australians are now being told to halt any non-essential domestic travel, with the government hinting at a “major announcement” to be handed down before the Easter school holidays.

The announcement comes as state across the country begin to enforce tough new domestic travel restrictions.

At a COVID-19 press conference, Morrison foreshadowed potential domestic travel restrictions in the lead-up to a national cabinet meeting on Tuesday, 24 March 2020.

“After consulting with premiers and chief ministers overnight, we have decided that we are moving immediately to recommend against all non-essential travel in Australia,” said Morrison on Friday.

“All non-essential travel should be cancelled … The measures that we will be considering tonight means that state premiers and chief ministers may have to take far more draconian measures to enforce social distancing.” [x]

We are expecting this ‘recommendation’ to become a requirement next week, as Morrison states: “We will be considering those issues further … and that (information) will be available before people go on school holidays. I am just flagging that for next week”.

The COVID-19 Compliance Drill has accelerated tenfold in the last week, with the ‘crisis’ revealing the extent of government powers to effectively shut society down at the drop of a hat. 

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Yesterday, authorities closed Bondi Beach, Australia’s most iconic tourist beach, after footage of crowds packed onto the beach — disregarding social distancing advice — shocked domestic viewers.

Bondi Beach, along with neighbouring beaches at Bronte and Tamarama, were being closed from today, with new restrictions to see beaches patrolled to ensure no more than 500 people.

Australians are being trained to obey the orders of their masters, as an economic remodelling takes place and a plethora of new control measures are introduced both in public and behind the scenes.

Even before an official announcement, the Northern Territory, Tasmania and other islands (including Lord Howe and Norfolk Island) have also introduced strict new border controls, while South Australian Premier Steven Marshall stating he’s considering closing the state’s borders.

STATE ANNOUNCEMENTS

A number of state governments have already announced their own travel restricts for both interstate and local residents in the past week in anticipation for the federal government announcement.

Since 20 March 2020, all “non-essential” travellers into Tasmania are now required to self-isolate for two weeks. Premier Peter Gutwein defined essential travellers as “those that are important to our health effort, or to an emergency situation, or those that keep our trade links running”.

It follows the introduction of a Tasmanian Arrivals Card for international travellers entering the state, which was launched on 15 March 2020.

Off the coast, only residents and essential service personnel are now allowed to enter both Lord Howe Island and Norfolk Island. Returning residents are required to self-isolate for 14 days.

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As mentioned, South Australia will consider closing the state’s borders this week. “We are now increasingly concerned about the rate of infection coming from sources interstate and we will look at this very closely over the next 24 hours,” Premier Steven Marshall said on 21 March 2020.

Remote communities in the Northern Territory are now only open to essential travel, including visits by doctors, nurses, teachers, police officers and council workers, as well as deliveries by barge, road or air. This is being enforced by enacting the controversial Biosecurity Law passed in 2015.

Furthermore, From 4pm on Tuesday, 24 March 2020, anyone entering the Northern Territory will be required to quarantine for two weeks. Some exceptions apply, including essential health officials, flight crews, freight workers and defence personnel.

West Australians are being urged to avoid non-essential interstate travel. However, he added shutting state borders entirely was not currently being considered, as consequences “would be absolutely catastrophic and dire.”

Indeed, many are predicting consequences to follow from such extreme restriction measures will be lasting and we are already starting to see beginning ripples in the Australian economy.

Morrison commended state governments for their decision to be ‘proactive’ about following the centralised advice, handed down from the World Health Organisation and other international bodies.

THE CHAIN HAS BEGUN

As a result of COVID-19, Australia is predicted to likely head through another round of economic turmoil, which will consolidate further resources and wealth to the top of the establishment.

Stimulus packages have been announced, and with cuts announced by the Reserve Bank this week, the total economic assistance package is now worth $189 billion. According to the government, this is equivalent to 9.7 per cent of Australia’s gross domestic product.

This all sounds good, but let’s not forget that the so-called $2 billion fund for Australian bushfire-affected businesses has been called “notional” by the head of the Bushfire Recovery Agency, while individuals are rejected for financial assistance and loans are being delayed.

Will Australian businesses and those who find themselves unemployed as a result of a national lockdown experience the same fate if the stimulus package is approved? How long will it take?

“We cannot prevent all the many hardships, and there will be many sacrifices that we will face in the months ahead,” Morrison said.

“While these hardships and sacrifices may break our hearts on occasion, we must not let them break our spirit and we must not let them break our resolves as Australians.”

Already, these hardships are beginning to be felt. Airlines, one of the first industries hit by the changes, have been making significant schedule changes, reductions and cancellations.

Qantas and Jetstar are reducing domestic flights by 60 per cent, with a significant reduction in flight frequency, route suspensions and a number of new route launches postponed.

The Virgin Australia Group — encompassing Virgin and Tigerair — is reducing its domestic capacity by about 50 per cent until 14 June 2020. Airlines are predicted to go broke by May 2020.

Next, indoor gatherings of more than 100 people have been banned in Australia, leading to the cancellation of popular events such as Sydney’s Vivid festival, Tasmania’s Dark Mofo festival, Melbourne and Brisbane’s International Comedy festivals.

Meanwhile, music concerts, festivals and arts events are being cancelled in mass. Museums and other tourist attractions are also closing their doors. Bars, clubs and restaurants are allowed to open, but a maximum of 100 patrons are allowed, each of whom must have at least 2m of distance.

Australia is facing a critical point in their history: Believe the propaganda being used to initiate this new world model or fight back to find a balance between control over society and personal freedom.

We will continue to cover the most pressing topics of the COVID-19 saga on TOTT News, and in particular, laws and measures being enacted while Australians are kept in a state of fear and distraction by the media and political establishment.

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