No curfew needed if everyone abides by rules: Minister

ANKARA

İHA Photo

Turkey will not “need to” impose a full-on curfew if every citizen abides by recent rules introduced, the interior minister has said.

Speaking in an interview with a private broadcaster, Süleyman Soylu said that more drastic measures may not be needed if everybody declares their own “emergency rule.”

“We are all witnessing the spread of the outbreak and the situation it will create. We have measures and steps we need to take,” Soylu said.

“If all of our citizens declare their own emergency rule, a more superior precaution may not even be needed. But if the situation takes the rapid spread to another point, more different measures might be needed,” he added.

At the weekend, Turkey imposed a partial curfew on citizens aged over 65 or with chronic diseases and created groups to meet their needs in a bid to stem the spread of the outbreak among the most vulnerable.

“We took really important decisions for [citizens] aged over 65 and took measures for their health. We held meetings on how to eliminate the difficulties of our citizens,” Soylu said.

“This virus has spread from the Umrah [pilgrimage] and from abroad. The [citizens] aged over 65 are at the risk group. [But] the decisions [we] took were deemed as positive by our nation,” he said.

The minister also said that some circles are exploiting the partial curfew imposed on the elderly.

After the curfew was imposed, several videos of mistreatment of the elderly went viral on social media, stirring outrage. A day before Soylu’s interview, a man was briefly detained after posting a video in which he intimidates an elderly citizen by pretending to be a policeman.

Soylu said that the ministry has detected 1,748 social media accounts who are posting videos showing mistreatment of the elderly, using the partial curfew as an excuse.

These accounts are affiliated with terror organizations such as FETÖ, PKK or DHKPC, the minister added.

83 pct decline in passenger traffic

The minister also said that with the recent partial curfew, imposed restrictions and calls to citizens for staying at home, to curb the spread of coronavirus, there has been an 83 percent decline in passenger traffic.

Regarding inter-city traffic, there has been a 65 percent decline, he added.

Soylu said that the research is based on data fifteen metropolitan cities for inter-city traffic.

“We see this as a positive thing,” he said.

He also conveyed that the use of public transportation also has been reduced by 65 percent. There is an 85 percent of decline in some cities, he added.