COVID-19 battle: Sri Lanka’s economy ‘cannot sustain continued closure’

Sri Lankan authorities will end a pandemic curfew imposed in parts of the country, saying people themselves should take the responsibility to avoid being infected the new coronavirus.

Army Commander Shavendra Silva heads a COVID-19 task force and he says President Gotabaya Rajapaksa is keen that a 10-day curfew now in force in Sri Lanka’s Western Province and some other areas be lifted Monday, according to The Associated Press.

Silva says Sri Lanka’s economy cannot sustain continued closure, with daily wage earners and small businesses being particularly hit hard.

He told Sri Lankans: “The country must move forward and the responsibility is with you the public.”

Sri Lanka is in the midst of a second wave of virus infections after the detection of large clusters centered on a garment factory and the country’s main wholesale fish market.

Sri Lanka’s attorney general has ordered an investigation into whether the apparent spread of the disease from a garment factory could have been prevented, saying it “endangered human life.”

A progress report is expected by Nov. 13 on whether there was “negligence on the part of the factory resulting in the spread of the virus,” said Nishara Jayaratne, the co-ordinating officer to the attorney general.