Hong Kong authorities on Monday warned about imposing punitive measures against people who have not been vaccinated for COVID-19, including a travel ban and prohibition on visiting certain public venues, in a move to boost the city’s sluggish vaccination rate.

The announcement was made after the city’s fourth pandemic wave dwindled, with the first confirmation of zero new cases for seven months.

Chief Executive Carrie Lam told a Monday press briefing that the new containment approach, put in place on April 12, had been effective, and that all walks of life are gradually returning to normal.

Even so, the only way for society to return to normal is for all people to get vaccinated, she emphasized, warning that vaccination would be an “essential requirement” for traveling abroad and visiting mainland China in the future.

Only 21% of Hong Kong residents over the age of 16 have been vaccinated since the citywide inoculation scheme was rolled out 95 days ago, according to official statistics.

“I appeal to my media friends. In order to help Hong Kong get rid of the pandemic as soon as possible, please try to report the situation more comprehensively and objectively,” Lam said.

In the government’s new campaign to significantly increase the vaccination rate, those who have not been vaccinated will be subject to tougher restrictions including longer quarantines, more intensive testing and restricted access to certain types of venues, Health Minister Sophia Chan said.

Those who have been vaccinated will be allowed to sit in groups of 12 people per table, with restaurants’ seating capacity increased to 75% and longer business hours, she said.

The measures are aimed at preventing a fifth wave of the pandemic, Chan explained, because of the higher risk of transmission in certain places such as restaurants, cinemas, school campuses and other recreational facilities.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong civil servants will receive extra days of paid leave as the vaccination rate increases, as an incentive for promoting injections. Details of the arrangement to be announced in the coming week, civil service chief Patrick Nip said.

Hong Kong authorities have struggled to resume economic activities and mitigate the losses from the year-long pandemic. The city’s unemployment rate has hovered around a 17-year high, and the labor minister has warned that the job market would continue to be difficult in the near term.

The much-anticipated air travel bubble between Hong Kong and Singapore, scheduled to begin on May 26, was postponed for a second time in mid-May, after the South Asian city-state saw a resurgence of locally transmitted COVID-19 cases. Another announcement about the bubble’s opening will be made not later than June 13, officials said.

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