SINGAPORE — A Singaporean who was hospitalised in Hubei province after being infected with the Covid-19 virus has been discharged, said Minister of Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan in Parliament on Monday (March 2).

“To date, we're aware of one Singaporean who was infected with the virus and hospitalised in Hubei province,” Dr Balakrishnan told fellow Members of Parliament (MP). 

“Our embassy in Beijing has been in touch with him to offer assistance, and I’m very pleased to inform the House he has been discharged from hospital in China.”

Dr Balakrishnan also gave an update on the status of the Singaporeans who were evacuated from Wuhan city, the epicentre of China’s Covid-19 outbreak.

On Jan 30 and Feb 9 this year, the Singapore Government deployed two evacuation flights to repatriate 266 Singaporeans and their family members from Wuhan back to Singapore.

Among these Singaporeans, seven of them tested positive for the novel coronavirus. 

“I'm glad to report that all have since been discharged from hospital,” said Dr Balakrishnan.

He also spoke of the importance of Singaporeans electronically registering themselves with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) when they head overseas. 

He said that many of the evacuees from Wuhan were electronically registered with the MFA, which made it easier to contact them and arrange for their flights home.

“Given the ongoing Covid-19 outbreak in China and... many other countries, we urge Singaporeans to e-register with us,” said Dr Balakrishnan. “It enables us to stay in touch with them (in times of emergencies)... as well as for them to stay in touch with us.”

During his speech, he also commended the MFA’s consular officers for “working extra hard in this critical period to look out for overseas Singaporeans”.  

Mr Lim Biow Chuan, MP for Mountbatten, then asked whether the MFA has reached out to Singaporeans who are still in China to find out why they are not coming back.

In response, Dr Balakrishnan said there are many reasons some Singaporeans have chosen to remain in China.

Earlier, he told Parliament that there are currently more than 1,900 Singaporeans in mainland China who are electronically registered with the MFA. He said he believes the number is “actually much higher”.

However, he told Mr Lim that the MFA was given a variety of reasons for why they chose not to return.

Some of them said that their livelihoods depend on them remaining in China. Others have families there and feel an obligation to look after their extended families.

“There were others — perhaps not so much now, but in the earlier phase of the crisis — who were worried even about travelling, making the journey to Wuhan and therefore decided that they would stay in place.”

Said Dr Balakrishan: “The key point is this: We will remain in touch, we will do our best to help and it would also help if they e-register with us because that gives us an immediate direct line to them, and similarly for them to us.”