S.I.83 of 2020 Public Health (Prevention, Containment and Treatment) National Lockdown Order Explained

Statutory Instrument S.I.83 of 2020 Public Health (Prevention, Containment and Treatment) National Lock-down Order was issued yesterday as an instrument that would control the COVID19 lock-down in the country.

In a nutshell here is what it entails:

Every business shall be closed except for

• pharmacies.
• laboratories
• banking institutions
• payment and money transfer services
• supermarkets and food retail outlets
• fuel outlets
• health care providers
• transport for staff working in essential services

Lockdown order

• every individual is confined to his or her home and may NOT leave therefrom except temporarily for the following purposes:
• to buy basic necessities at a supermarket or food retail store, or fuel or gas at an outlet NOT exceeding 5km’s from his or her home (unless there is no such shop or outlet within the radius, or such shop or outlet is closed for business, in which he/she can go to the nearest such shop from his/her home.
• To buy medicine from an establishment no further than 5km from his or her home.
• If employed in an essential service to go to and from his or her place of employment.
• To obtain medical assistance on his or her own behalf.
• To go to the home of anyone to whom he or she is related or for whom the individual has a duty of care for purpose of rendering assistance to buy medicine or food

Every individual found outside his/her home shall have the burden of proving to the satisfaction of an enforcement officer that he or she is covered by any of the exceptions listed or is acting under exceptional circumstances.
Any person who fails to comply shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding level twelve or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding one year or to both such fine and such imprisonment.

If he or she refuses to return immediately to his or her home or has no home, or is found to be outside of the 5km radius (or in the case of a person who is a driver or passenger of a vehicle 20km’s) from his or her home be treated as having escaped detention, quarantine or isolation and may be arrested without a warrant.