Sri Lanka lifting pandemic curfew to aid economy

Sri Lanka is in the midst of a second wave of virus infections. (File/AFP)

• President Gotabaya Rajapaksa is keen that a 10-day curfew now in force in Sri Lanka’s Western Province and some other areas be lifted Monday

Sri Lankan authorities will end a pandemic curfew imposed in parts of the country, saying people themselves should take the responsibility to avoid being infected the new coronavirus.
Army Commander Shavendra Silva heads a COVID-19 task force and he says President Gotabaya Rajapaksa is keen that a 10-day curfew now in force in Sri Lanka’s Western Province and some other areas be lifted Monday. Silva says the country’s economy can’t sustain continued closure, with daily wage earners and small businesses being particularly hit hard.
He told Sri Lankans, “The country must move forward and the responsibility is with you the public.”
Sri Lanka is in the midst of a second wave of virus infections after the detection of large clusters centered on a garment factory and the country’s main wholesale fish market.