Parliament passes state of alert law

After two months of being in a state of emergency, Romania now enters a state of alert.

Daniela Budu, 14.05.2020, 14:00

The state of emergency, which was declared two
months ago in Romania to tackle the situation generated by the coronavirus
pandemic, is now to be replaced by a state of alert, which will see some lockdown
measures eased. Bucharest is thus following the example of other European
states, many of which have already entered the third phase of a gradual relaxation
of the restrictions imposed to combat the infection.

During the state of alert, many measures will
remain in place in Romania, and, unlike in other countries, children will not
return to school and bars and restaurants will not reopen, while out-of-town
travel is restricted. Parks will, however, reopen, and people will be able to leave
their homes without signing a declaration in advance stating where they’re
going and why. Wearing face masks will be obligatory in enclosed public spaces.

The final version of the law laying down the measures
to be imposed during the state of alert was adopted by the Chamber of Deputies
on Wednesday after making a number of amendments to the bill passed earlier by
the Senate. These amendments include the reintroduction of travel restrictions
initially eliminated by the Senate, the possibility of reopening outdoor bars
and restaurants provided health measures and physical distancing rules are
respected as well as the reopening of commercial centres with a surface area of
less than 15,000 square metres. Fines for failure to comply with the measures
imposed by the authorities are capped at the equivalent of around 3,000 euros.

The state of emergency, declared on 16th
March for one month and then extended for a further 30 days, entailed a series
of measures relating to trade, services, healthcare, work relations and places
of worship, as well as a system of fines for breaking the lockdown. A total of 12
emergency orders were issued during this period to regulate these areas. Romania
declared a state of emergency only a few days after the World Health
Organisation had declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic.

So far, more than 1,000 people have died in
Romania as a result of the novel coronavirus and more than 16,000 have been
infected according to the latest official figures. The good news right now is
that approximately half of those infected have recovered. For more than two
weeks now, the number of active cases has levelled off at between 7,300 and 7,500.
What’s more, the average number of recoveries has begun to equal or even, on
some days, exceed the number of new cases. (CM)