Parliament Speaker Talakvadze expresses readiness for ‘mass self-isolation and quarantine if necessary’
By Liza Mchedlidze
Wednesday, March 25
According to Parliament Speaker Archil Talakvadze, the government is successfully observing the situation, managing to prevent the mass outbreak of the Coronavirus in the country, adding that the ongoing pandemic is still a severe issue in the world and Georgia should also remain vigilant.
“At this moment appropriate measures have been taken, but if necessary, we do not exclude the possibility of declaring the general self-isolation and quarantine.”
“If there is a sharp increase in cases, we need to take additional measures. As soon as the risks in Marneuli and Bolnisi were identified, the government acted immediately and introduced a tightened quarantine regime. These kinds of decisions are made reasonably, exactly when they are needed,” said Talakvadze, adding that the government is also concerned with economic issues.
Talakvadze also stated, regarding the increased hate speech towards ethnic minorities, after the Coronavirus outbreak started in the Marneuli region where a lot of Armenian and Azerbaijani reside, “We have to understand that Coronavirus does not distinguish people by their social status, position or ethnicity, it is a threat to everyone,” said Talakvadze.
Talakvadze stressed the importance of social distancing, the fulfillment of the recommendations of healthcare professionals and the importance of civic responsibility.
The Speaker also discussed the possibility of postponing the upcoming elections due to Coronavirus concerns. According to him, there is no danger that they will not be able to apply constitutional amendments at this time. He said the constitutional changes are based on the consensus of political groups.
According to Talakvadze, holding elections is possible 60 days after the state emergency is called off.
