From tomorrow through the 17th of the current month, extended free hours will be set for the general population to help reduce the number of new coronavirus infections recorded in the Dominican Republic in recent weeks.
The measure is contained in article four of Decree 133-21 issued last night by President Luis Abinader, which establishes that curfew on weekdays starts at 9 p.m. and ends at 5 p.m. at sunrise and on weekends from 7 p.m. at night until 5 in the morning.
“There is a free movement of three extra hours per day, with the sole purpose of allowing people to go to their respective homes. As a result, there is free transit from Monday to Friday until midnight and on Saturday and Sunday until 10 pm ”, the decree explains in article five.
In this sense, the president instructed that working hours in the public sector remain until 3:00 p.m. and that 40% of public employees who are not essential to the activity of the state will continue to work through the teleworking mode.
It ordered the state entities that provide public transportation services, such as the Office for the Reordering of Transportation (OPRET) and the Metropolitan Office of Bus Services (OMSA), to offer their services during the free circulation deferment hours.
The new decree gives people the freedom to use open-air spaces, such as parks and promenades, for activities without crowds and with strict adherence to current sanitation protocols.
“It is determined that places dedicated to sports and physical exercise, such as gyms, can receive customers up to 60% of their total capacity in their facilities, in strict accordance with current health protocols,” he says.
While the places where food and drinks are consumed, customers in their facilities can receive up to 60% of their capacity, without exceeding six people per table, in the places that apply, according to the protocol.
The decree also stipulates that churches may conduct activities three times a week, in strict compliance with protocols, without exceeding 60% of the building’s capacity.
The provision enforces the ban on activities and large-scale events involving the agglomeration of people.
“The activities of the tourism sector will continue to be regulated by the sector protocol,” the decree states.
It also notes that, without prejudice to the foregoing, the organization, promotion and execution of mass activities, such as parties and other similar ones, is prohibited in tourist facilities throughout the country.
PREVENTION
Face mask. This decree stipulates that the use of masks in public and private places for public use is mandatory, as are the other measures and protocols of social distancing adopted by the authorities.