Why are factories open but family dinners restricted for CNY?

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Factories Are Permitted to Operate While Family Reunion Dinners Are Restricted for Chinese New Year Due to Differentiated Risk Assessments

The restrictions on Chinese New Year (CNY) reunion dinners, limiting them to members of the same household, while allowing factories and mosques to operate under specific conditions, stem from differentiated risk assessments and public health justifications. These differing approaches reflect a strategy to balance essential economic and religious activities with the need to curb the transmission of Covid-19, particularly during a period of high social interaction. The National Security Council (NSC) stated that the CNY SOPs were developed after engaging with stakeholder groups representing the ethnic Chinese community.
Differing Operational Contexts and Risk Mitigation

The operational contexts for factories, mosques, and family gatherings present distinct challenges and opportunities for risk mitigation. Factories, for instance, involve foreign workers and are subject to specific protocols to manage potential outbreaks within their premises. Similarly, mosques were partially open for Friday prayers, indicating a controlled environment for religious observance. In contrast, the customary reunion dinner, a deeply ingrained cultural practice for the Chinese community, traditionally involves multiple generations and extended family members, thereby increasing the potential for wider transmission if not carefully managed.
Government's Consultation Process and Defence of SOPs

Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri, the minister responsible for announcing the SOPs, defended the protocols by stating they were formulated after extensive engagement with dozens of stakeholder groups. He expressed bewilderment at the public backlash, highlighting that associations and bodies representing the ethnic Chinese community had endorsed the prepared and endorsed protocols. This consultation process aimed to ensure that the regulations, while restrictive, were developed with input from the community they most directly affected.
Criticism Regarding Cultural Insensitivity and SOP Rectification Calls

Despite the defence, Umno MP Datuk Seri Najib Razak voiced criticism, arguing that the SOPs did not accurately reflect the culture of the Chinese community. He questioned the rationale behind allowing factories to operate with foreign workers and mosques to be partially open for Friday prayers, while restricting Chinese families from having reunion dinners with their elders. Najib suggested that the NSC should have consulted more broadly with various ethnic groups to avoid perceived cultural insensitivity and called for the SOPs to be quickly retracted and rectified.

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Why are factories open but family dinners restricted for CNY?

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