After 42 days with no new cases of Ebola in Liberia, the West African country has been declared Ebola-free, leading Canada to lift a visa ban that was introduced in late October, 2014. This ban halted the processing of visa requests from those in countries experiencing widespread Ebola infections, including Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia.

This was a controversial decision because, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), it violated the International Health Regulations stating that no action should be taken to inhibit international trade or travel outside of that which the WHO recommends in the case of a global public health emergency.

The WHO’s recommendations stated that travel to and from the three affected countries should not be restricted. However, because the ban did not affect those travelling to and from the West African countries in attempts to help contain the outbreak, such as Canadian medical personnel or those working for international aid organizations, Canada claimed that the policy did not violate the International Health Regulations.

The ban remains in place for Guinea and Sierra Leone, both of which continue to struggle with Ebola outbreaks. Eighteen new cases were recorded over the past few days in Guinea and Sierra Leone, both of which have yet to be declared free of the Ebola virus.

Liberia was responsible for 10,564 of the total 26,628 cases of Ebola, and 4,716 of the total 11,010 deaths since the start of the epidemic a year and a half ago. The outbreak paralyzed the country, which experienced the closure of schools, businesses, markets, and borders, as well as a lack of food and fuel.