7 News Belize

Regulations Outlined For National State of Emergency
posted (March 31, 2020)
The National State of of Emergency and curfew starts on Thursday morning at 12:01 AM. That's about 29 hours away, and today we all learned what it will mean for your personal movement, and your workplace - whether it will be classed as essential - and be allowed to continue, or non essential meaning work will stop.

The implications for national life are HUGE as Belize now faces a 30 day lockdown, but it's what we will call a soft lockdown.

Basically, the curfew is only between 8:00 and 5:00 in the morning, but those who go out in the day have to do it for a reason, like heading to the shop to buy supplies, or going to work at somewhere designated an essential service.

The Prime Minister and the Attorney General outlined and detailed the provisions of the new proclamation for a state of emergency, and its regulations:

Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow, Prime Minister
"Under the state of emergency the list of businesses that must be closed will be expanded, greatly expanded and so there is that first category of businesses that must close, a category I repeat that will have to be expanded in terms of the number of businesses required to be closed. It has to be expanded from what it currently is. That's number one."

"Number two then, will be the category of businesses that are allowed to open and to conduct their activities during prescribed daylight hours. There will be some differentiation there, for example, government offices will close at four, the AG will tell you the hours of closing for other businesses that are allowed to remain open. And finally, there is going to be the category of essential services. The distinction between the essential services and the generalized category of businesses allowed to remain open is that essential services are going to be able to operate during curfew hours when the other regular businesses that are open will not be able to operate."

Michael Peyrefitte, Attorney General
"During the hours of 8pm and 5am the next day, everything will be closed with a few exceptions: People will not be allowed to wonder on the streets or be on the streets except a few designated people. During the day hours certain businesses will be open, certain businesses will not be open. If you are going to be moving during the state of emergency, you have to be moving with a purpose. You can't just be taking stroll or walking down the street or going to see a friend. You must have a specific purpose for which you are moving and the police would be able to stop you and question you as to what is your specific purpose and if your specific purpose doesn't match what is in the regulation, the police may arrest you without warrant under the regulations and you could be fined and confined. You can only move during the day. This is from 5am to 8pm to purchase essential needs, to get medical or veterinary attention, medical emergencies or you are an essential worker going to and from work. Including in these are security guards patrolling, agricultural or factory workers or other similar operations requiring the movement of personnel for the effective conduct of business or operations. You can do these during the none curfew hours, but you must be moving for those purposes. These are the people who will be allowed to be out and about even during the curfew hours which is as we said 8pm to 5am the next day. Government offices, medical and auxiliary services, private security services, public utility workers, social workers authorized to respond to emergencies, sanitation workers, productive sectors which involves people who have to produce agricultural products and potable water."

"Essential services are also the government offices, departments, statutory bodies and state owned companies. Between the hours of 5am and 7pm fuel stations and fuel depots, public transportation providers, bakeries and tortilla factories, mills and other factories, farms, port operations and services connected with the loading and unloading of ships and aircrafts delivery at and from ports. So if you are going to work, it will have to be if you are going to work during the none curfew hours, you must be going to one of these places to work."

"Between the hours of 8am and 7pm which is a later time these businesses can open at a later time. Pharmacies, convenient stores, food stores, super markets, meat shops, butchers, distributers and factories that deal with carbonated and other beverages, financial institutions, wholesalers and retailers, hotels, markets, service of take out food, mechanic shops, waste disposal. hardware stores. If you are one of those you can open up between 8am and 7pm at night. If you're not any one of those you have to be closed."

Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow, Prime Minister
"Either we are serious or we are not. In deed if your business is one that is going to be closed, it is going to mean tremendous economic hardship for you and your employees, but health comes first and we all agree that the only way to stop the spread of the virus is by doing this nationwide shutdown."

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