Hairdressers, beauty salons reopen in Malaysia

Malaysia reopened nearly all economic and social activities Wednesday after nearly three months of lockdown successfully brought down virus infections. Malaysians can now travel for domestic holidays, get their hair cut and visit street markets, while schools and religious activities will gradually resume.

While happy to be back at work, hairstylist Shirley Chai said she is nervous about the strict health rules for hairdressers. She is especially worried about the one-hour time limit for each client.

The government says the country will enter a "recovery" phase until the end of August, and warned that restrictions will be reinstated if infections soar again.Night clubs, pubs, karaoke, theme parks and reflexology centers will stay shut during the recovery period.

Contact sports or those that involve many spectators such as football, and activities involving mass groups, are still banned.Malaysia has recorded 8,336 infections and 117 deaths. Daily cases have dropped to only seven new daily cases since Monday, the lowest since the lockdown started March 18.

(Image Credit: AP)