Jamaica bans travellers from Ebola-affected areas

KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Jamaican Government has said that its ban on travellers to and from Ebola-affected countries “is in the interest of countering the threat to public health and national security”.

“Having regard to the threat posed by the Ebola disease, the category of travellers designated in the ban are hereby not permitted to land in Jamaica,” the security ministry said in a release Thursday.

The travel ban has been made pursuant to Section 6 of the Aliens Act and Section 4 of the Immigration Restriction (Commonwealth Citizens) Act, which provides the criteria for the eligibility for admission of aliens to Jamaica and prohibited immigrants respectively.

This ban extends to persons ordinarily resident in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone as well as persons who have travelled to or transited through Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, within 28 days of having departed from these countries.

The ban came on the heel of an incident in which a man, who landed at the Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay Wednesday, was isolated and screened for Ebola. He was sent home Thursday.