By Eric Martin
Western Australia has emerged relatively unscathed by COVID-19, with Premier Mark McGowan announcing via Twitter, “Thank you Western Australia, we are leading the nation because of you,” in the second week of May, when official announcements were made that on the 18th of that month, Australians would finally be able to enjoy an easing of quarantine restrictions.
“Our next phase of easing restrictions will take effect on Monday 18 May and will include a range of changes to allow more sport, fitness and recreational activity in wWestern Australians were encouraged to return to work unless they were unwell or vulnerable.
And most importantly for Catholics, the government announced that places of worship (as well as community facilities and libraries) were also allowed to re-open, with a limit of 20 people in attendance at a time.
While these changes did not mean that every business and Church service was able to resume, it was an important step that allowed many West Australians to begin the process of getting back to work and worship.
Ahead of these announcements, the National Cabinet met on 8 May to further discuss options for easing restrictions over the coming months, helping prepare Australians to go back to work in a COVID-19 safe environment and getting the economy back to a more sustainable level.
In a press statement that day Prime Minister Scott Morrison said that, “Australia has so far been highly successful in ‘flattening the curve’.”
“The number of new COVID-19 cases in Australia each day is very low and we can now begin to take careful steps to ease some of the restrictions that have helped us suppress the spread of this virus,” Mr Morrison said.
“Our success so far means we have slowed the spread of COVID-19 and built the capacity in our health system to manage the impact of the virus. We can now start to progressively ease the restrictions we have in place.”
“Australia has so far been highly successful in ‘flattening he curve’.”
The announcements meant that many Australians were able to start getting out to the shops, undertaking some local trips and travel, visiting playgrounds and public parks, and having friends and family around with a bit more freedom.
But the National Cabinet was also clear: continued suppression of COVID-19 is about collective action.
“Success depends on maintaining our new community norms – physical distancing, good hygiene practices and downloading the COVIDSafe app to keep us all safe while we are out and about,” Mr Morrison said.
The Australian government is taking a measured approach along a three-step plan, with states and territories able to move between the steps in that plan at different times, in line with their current public health situation and local conditions.
The three steps of the national plan include:
- Step 1 – focus on carefully reopening the economy and giving Australians opportunities to return to work and social activities, including gatherings of up to 10 people, up to 5 visitors in the family home and some local and regional travel
- Step 2 – build on this with gatherings of up to 20, and more businesses reopening, including gyms, beauty services and entertainment venues like galleries and cinemas.
- Step 3 – transition to COVID safe ways of living and working, with gatherings of up to 100 people permitted.
Arrangements under step 3 will be the ‘new normal’ while the virus remains a threat and international travel and mass gatherings over 100 people will remain restricted.
“So long as Australians keep living and working in a COVID safe way, we’ll be able to keep case numbers low and continue taking steps on the pathway to relaxing more restrictions,” Mr Morrison said.
In line with this, WA Premier Mark McGowan stated that beyond the current changes, West Australians could expect further adjustments to restrictions regarding sport, fitness, and recreation to take effect mid-June.
“This may include the resumption of contact sport, further increases to gathering sizes and patron limits, and a further relaxation of restrictions on gyms and similar businesses,” Mr McGowan said.
WA’s own four-phase roadmap to reopening, which matches the first three steps of the national plan, was developed in conjunction with the National Cabinet principles and is based on the best health advice for WA.
Phase Four of the WA Roadmap will be assessed and finalised in due course, with WA’s interstate border closure remaining in place until this time.
The border closure is expected to be the final restriction lifted.
At the time of writing, Mass is still being streamed daily by the Archdiocese of Perth, celebrated by priests of St Mary’s Cathedral, at 12.10pm to the Archdiocesan website, YouTube and Facebook, as well as St Mary’s Cathedral website and social media platforms.
Cathedral Dean Fr Sean Fernandez said he is grateful such a service is being provided with the support of the Archdiocesan Communications Office and IT Office and at this time.
“Many people may be experiencing the inability to participate in Mass as a deprivation, even as a desolation which is testing their faith. This is perfectly understandable; we, Catholics, are a sacramental people and the Eucharist is at the heart of our faith,” Fr Sean said.
“It is important for the people to know that even though they can’t be physically present, the livestreaming of Mass is one way they participate in the prayer of the community,” he said.
Jamie to insert statement on the Archdiocese planned return to (or limitations to) regular Mass services being held at local parishes again.
At the time of writing, Western Australia saw the number of cases of people with COVID-19 slowly rise to 552.
Nationally the total number of positive cases rose to 6,941.
From pages 8 and 9 of Issue 25: Crises and Trauma of The Record Magazine