Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan announced during one of his “Conversation with the Citizens” Facebook live videos that the government held a session discussing the situation surrounding the coronavirus in Armenia and the government’s next steps.
“Several decisions were made, but it is important to me that you remain informed about what we discussed and in what context those discussions were held. We are discussing all the possible ways in which we can prevent the spread of the coronavirus in Armenia. We are trying to understand how we can implement other countries’ strategies in Armenia,” the Prime Minister said.
According to him, “The largest spread of the coronavirus took place after the incident in Ejmiatsin when three members of the same family tested positive for the virus and were quarantined. The Armenian citizen came to Ejmiatsin from Italy and representatives from the Ministry of Health frequently monitored her condition. The citizen had a rising fever during this time. But the citizen did not only hide this fact from the state. She had an IV and participated in an engagement party because her relative’s engagement was important to her. She was in contact with a hairstylist and jeweler and she finally went to the event. And here we have a crisis at hand because her nephew and husband were found to have the coronavirus and all the party attendants, including the jeweler and hairstylist, were quarantined.”
Nikol Pashinyan believes that none of the methods to prevent the spread of the virus would have prevented this from happening, and the only thing that could have done so was a sense of responsibility. “Yes, state agencies can do many things, but if people don’t want to take part, then this is what happens. It is important for all of us to regard this situation with a sense of personal responsibility because we are putting the health of our family and friends in harm’s way if we don’t. The best way to prevent the spread of the coronavirus is for everyone to have a personal sense of reality and responsibility,” the Prime Minister emphasized.
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“Nothing will happen if we don’t greet one another with a handshake or a kiss… You saw that the meeting with the EU Council President in Brussels took place without any handshakes despite the fact that the procedure states that handshakes need to take place,” Pashinyan emphasized. He added, “We’re not going to have police arrest anyone who greets each other with a kiss. That’s impossible.”
The Prime Minister said that it is not necessary for people to go out with face masks on. Only those who have the appropriate symptoms and people who had contact with such individuals need to wear masks.
Gohar Hakobyan
