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(CNN Spanish) - A delegation from the government of El Salvador left Wednesday night for Belize to repatriate by land the first group of Salvadorans who could not return due to the closure of the San Óscar Arnulfo Romero International Airport. The airport has been inactive since March 18, as part of measures to contain the coronavirus outbreak in the country.
“It is the first mission of many. There are more than 4,000 registered Salvadorans, ”said Foreign Minister Alexandra Hill Tinoco.
According to Hill Tinoco, all the stranded travelers will be able to return, although he asked for patience, since the return of all cannot be coordinated at the same time. "We will carry out this operation in a progressive, orderly and safe manner for the good of all," he said.
The Foreign Ministry claims to have a repatriation schedule drawn up by order of the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice on April 8,
after admitting an appeal for protection presented by Salvadorans who have not been able to return to the country.
President Nayib Bukele had said on April 6 that the country did not have the capacity to repatriate all of them, since it did not have enough space to house them
in containment centers. Then, on April 20, after calling it unconstitutional, the president vetoed a decree approved by the Legislative Assembly that sought the return of the compatriots.
Now the authorities assure that they are implementing the necessary protocols. The members of the delegation and the buses were disinfected before leaving.
Bukele's controversial measures in jails 2:16According to the Health authorities, upon their return the repatriated persons will be quarantined for a period of 30 days, in order to rule out that they are carriers of the virus.