Mandalay – Myanmar extended COVID-19 restrictions on gatherings, social distancing and protective measures as the confirmed cases in the country reached 336.
The government’s Central Committee on Prevention, Control and Treatment on COVID-19 on Monday, issued an order on restrictions and bans on gatherings and a curfew between 12 am and 4 am was extended until July 31.
The restrictions include gatherings, social distancing in public and limiting passengers on highway buses and numbers in restaurants.
The temporary bans on all kinds of visa, except for urgent diplomatic and United Nations visits, were extended until the end of July. International flights, apart from cargo and relief flights, are also banned until the end of July as all of the new COVID-19 cases have been imported.
Vice-President Henry Van Thio said in Naypyidaw last week that international passenger flights are expected to resume in October, depending on the COVID-19 situation.
Myanmar has eased some restrictions, such as stay-at-home restrictions in Yangon’s COVID-19 hotspots since May. Public gatherings of more than five at government offices, companies, factories, schools and training were also lifted.
Restaurants and teashops are already allowed to open with limited customers. Highway buses and domestic flights are allowed with limited numbers. Domestic travel can resume with pagodas and monasteries reopening in recent weeks. Worship at mosques and churches is not yet allowed.
Enrolment at high schools across the country began on Monday with high schools due to reopen on July 21. Middle and primary schools and universities and training schools are still closed.
Myanmar imposed COVID-19 restrictions in March. Since June, COVID-19 cases have declined with very few domestic transmissions, prompting the government to ease some measures.
Most new cases have been imported, with the country reporting six deaths and 261 recoveries on Monday.
State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has warned the public on Facebook to be careful and not to neglect protection measures as infections could rise again.
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