Emotional return as Malaysia-Singapore reopens land travel after two years
SHAH ALAM - Crowds gathered to cheer Malaysians travelling back on home soil after land borders reopen at the Johor-Singapore Causeway.
People gathered just before midnight on the streets excited to see vehicles crossing over from the island.
Updates of the Woodlands Checkpoint on checkpoint.sg saw cars stretched out bumper-to-bumper as they started queueing up at 10 minutes prior to the official reopening.
Based on Sinar Harian’s live report by Shafiq Tino, people started cheering and clapping hands as cars and motorcycles started to arrive in Johor after passing the Woodlands checkpoint.
“Welcome back, welcome back to Malaysia,” they shouted.
Despite all the excitement and festivities, the atmosphere was an emotional much-awaited welcome for many.
Videos shared by those present on the ground showed many Malaysians had also walked across the border with luggage in tow.
One video, which has since gone viral, showed Malaysians waiting to cross the checkpoint started singing the Malaysian national anthem.
“Who doesn’t know how to sing Negaraku can’t enter,” one man’s voice in the video said, as others around him laughed.
On March 25, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob and Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong had announced that Malaysia and Singapore will reopen land borders for fully vaccinated travellers and non-fully vaccinated children aged 12 and below to enter the countries without the need to undergo border health measures such as quarantine and testing.
Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said that there will be no quota for all modes of travel when the border reopens. He added that the land checkpoints at the Woodlands Causeway and the Tuas Second Link will also operate 24 hours daily.
The reopening would facilitate the resumption of daily commuting across the border using private vehicles and enable people to make short trips to the neighbouring country.
