Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the arrest of people who have not been vaccinated against the coronavirus and are violating the curfew in place in the country. Those who refuse to stay at home in violation of the instructions could be arrested, Duterte said today. The CoV pandemic, he said, is a “national emergency” that justifies such action.
In light of the rapid spread of the Omicron variant, the government had decided earlier this week that in the capital Manila and several other cities, unvaccinated people would only be allowed to leave their homes to purchase essential goods or to exercise.
So far, only less than half of Filipinos have been vaccinated against the coronavirus. He was “shocked” by the low vaccination rate, Duterte said. “If you don’t get vaccinated, you are putting everyone at risk,” he said, addressing the unvaccinated.
The number of reported new infections rose to more than 17,000 today, more than three times the number two days earlier. Just before Christmas, the number of daily new infections had been a few hundred.
- source: ORF.at/agencies/picture: reuters.com
This post has already been read 501 times!
