Shopping Mall Sales, Travel Between GCQ-MGCQ Areas Now Allowed

Just in time for Christmas, shopping malls can hold sales and other activities that spur economic activity, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said Friday.

Persons in areas under the two lowest quarantines, GCQ and MGCQ, can now cross borders under "reasonable regulations" from local authorities. This includes those who are not classified as authorized persons outside of residence or APOR. The inter-zonal movements in GCQ and MGCQ will be "for any purpose," Roque said.

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Ready Your Passports, Vacation Trips Abroad Allowed Starting Oct. 21 

Also on Friday, Roque said foreign leisure travel will be allowed from Oct. 21 as long as health protocols are followed. Of course receiving countries have their own rules for visitors.

The Inter-Agency Task Force on COVID 19 also widened the age bracket of those who can leave their houses, to 15-65 from 21-60. This means teens and seniors can now run errands.

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Indonesia on Thursday reclaimed the top spot in Southeast Asia in terms of the number of COVID-19 cases, overtaking the Philippines, official data showed. This underscores how Manila has slowed infections that threatened to overwhelm the system last August.

The Philippines is slowly unwinding quarantines that have been in place since March. Starting October -- restaurants can operate for 24 hours, hotels can offer staycation packages, and commuters can be spaced one seat apart in public transport instead of one meter.