The News Lens
Date: 2020/02/07
By: Jeremy Van der Haegen

A cruise ship carrying over 1,700 Taiwanese passengers has been sent back and forth between the ports of Taiwan and Japan.

The cruise ship Superstar Aquarius, carrying over 1,700 Taiwanese passengers on board, has made yet another U-turn from Okinawa’s Naha port to Keelung, Taiwan. 

Taiwan’s Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) announced on February 5 that international cruise ships that have visited China, Hong Kong or Macau in the last 14 days will be prohibited from docking at Taiwanese ports. The immediate decision, however, left the Superstar Aquarius cruise ship temporarily stranded between Naha and Keelung. 

Originally scheduled to return to Keelung on Friday, February 7, the Superstar Aquarius has sailed in circles as the Taiwanese and Japanese government officials negotiated on where the passengers can be dropped off. 

After the cruise ship ban, the CECC had only permitted the Taiwanese nationals onboard to return via the Keelung seaport. Meanwhile, passengers from the Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam, and other countries were to be dropped off at Naha. But the Japanese government rejected the docking today and sent the ship back to Keelung.     [FULL  STORY]