The government announced on Friday a series of new measures aimed at preventing the spread of coronavirus in the country.
Announcing the new measures, Deputy Prime Minister-Foreign Minister Kudret Özersay said that the new measures were aimed at ensuring the safety of the public.
He said that the decision included suspending work permit applications for a period of 30 days in an attempt to avoid crowded waiting lines at the Labour Department
Özersay said no legal process will be applied to workers who need to extend their work permits during this period.
He said that the Tourism Ministry has also sent letters to all hotels instructing them that tour-groups larger than ten persons were not allowed.
“In any case, the last tour-group, except for those in quarantine, will have left the country by next week,” he added.
Özersay announced that the police academy for new recruits, like all other schools and education institutions, will also be closed until March 22
Other new measures include the creation of a new call centre which will be operational 24/7.
Özersay also quashed rumours that the government was thinking of imposing a curfew.
“There is no such thought. All we are urging is for the public to avoid crowded places or environments,” he said.
The Deputy Prime Minister also repeated his calls for all TRNC citizens who recently returned to the island from travel to abide by the measures to self-isolate themselves for two weeks.
Source: BRT