Guatemala orders a new state of calamity due to the pandemic
The president of Guatemala, Alejandro Giammattei, has decreed a new state of calamity for the next four weeks due to the spread of COVID-19, although his decision will have to be ratified by Congress in the next three days.
Giammattei had already ordered a state of calamity on August 13, but it was not endorsed in Congress, so once again the president tries to put the measure into effect.
The president has also indicated that it will be implemented a curfew from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m. AND educational, sporting and religious activities with public have been prohibited, with the aim of avoiding agglomerations and therefore the spread of the disease.
The Guatemalan president also said that he “understands” the medical personnel who are on the front line attending the emergency, with hospitals at 97% capacity in seriously ill patients.
Guatemala is located in the third wave of the disease since August 14 and in the last hours has broken the record for deaths in a single day with 88 deaths from COVID.
According to the Constitution, the state of calamity establishes the possibility of limiting the free movement of the population, preventing concentrations of people and suspending meetings, among other measures.
Vaccination in Guatemala is one of the lowest in Latin America since only 1.3 million of its 16.3 million inhabitants have received the two doses to get immunized against COVID-19.
–
