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El Salvador tightens quarantine measures 3:21
(CNN Spanish) - The president of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, defended this Friday the implementation of more drastic measures to decrease the number of people on the streets and thus reduce the risk of contagion due to coronavirus.
Bukele called a group of deputies of the conservative Nationalist Republican Alliance (Arena) "death squads 2.0", who on Friday called for the immediate repeal of the measures in force for 15 days from Thursday.
The new provisions suspend the circulation of public transport, prevent people from crossing from one municipality to another and allow them to go to markets, supermarkets, pharmacies and to carry out bank procedures only twice a week, according to the last digit of the identity document.
The Arena party considers that these decisions affect constitutional rights and become a "disguised regime of exception" by restricting the freedom of movement of people, essential products and services, something that is not contemplated in the decree approved by the Legislative Assembly in the early Tuesday morning.
Bukele acknowledges the discomforts caused by the new measures taken, but warns that "the only hope to avoid a health catastrophe" in El Salvador is for the special quarantine to work, and accused the opposition of "drooling" "for seeing dead bodies lying on the sidewalks. and being able to blame the government ”.
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The Arena party's request joins the calls made to the government on Thursday by the Salvadoran Industrial Association (ASI) and the National Association of Private Enterprise (ANEP) to repeal the measures that have made the operation of most of the Business.
"The State must ensure the enjoyment of freedom, health and economic well-being of all inhabitants. It is not one or the other. It is not removing some to secure another. They are all at the same time ”, assured Javier Simán, president of ANEP.
The Salvadoran president said on Tuesday that if the special quarantine worked, several sectors would gradually reopen. This Friday the business unions met with Rolando Castro, Minister of Labor, to analyze the security protocols that would be implemented when the companies reopened.