State due MVR 278,000 in fines for violation of mask order

Fines due to the state for violation of an order issued by the Director General of Public Health making masks mandatory in public in the greater Male’ region now amounts to MVR 278,000.

In a press conference on Saturday night, HEOC spokesperson and epidemiologist Dr. Nazla Rafeeq said that authorities have issued warnings to 1,356 people and fined 278 people for violation of the order so far.

The Director General of Public Health has ordered that everyone in the greater Male’ region must wear masks covering their nose, mouth and jaw when outside their homes.

The only exemptions are:

• Children under the age of two years
• While exercising
• Those who are unable to wear or take off masks without assistance

Violation of the mandatory mask order carries a MVR 1,000 fine.

Meanwhile, 157 people were warned and 79 people fined over the last 24 hours for violation of the curfew which is in effect from 10:00 pm to 05:00 am in the greater Male’ region.

The decision to make masks mandatory and expand the curfew in the greater Male’ region – the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in Maldives – follows a surge in coronavirus cases with the relaxation of the lockdown in the capital.

It is also now mandatory to wear masks while travelling between islands, and when out in public in other residential islands which have active cases.

Maldives has 4,898 confirmed coronavirus cases, including 129 new cases recorded on Saturday. 2,791 of the patients have since recovered, while 19 have died from complications.

The country now has 2,088 active cases. 144 of the patients are hospitalized.