The National Police reported on Thursday, 26 March 2020 the arrest of nearly 10,000 persons for breaking the curfew law. As of that date, curfew started at 8 pm and ended at 6 am on the following morning since 20 March. The Police announced that on Wednesday, 1,480 persons were arrested. The number is up 12% compared to the previous evening when 1,320 persons were arrested. The Police says that the individuals are putting the safety of their community, family, neighbors and their own at risk.
The Police says the provinces were people are most unruly are Santiago, La Romana, Greater Santo Domingo and Peravia (Baní).
The curfew hours have now been lowered. As of Friday, 27 March 2020 curfew will be from 5 pm to 6 am.
The Police called for the people to act with solidarity and responsibility. The Police has threatened to press charges against those that violate the curfew.
The curfew is part of a national lockdown to stem the increase of the Covid-19 virus in the Dominican Republic. The first case was on 1 March 2020 and as of 25 March 2020 there were 488 positive cases and 10 deaths in the country.
The government also ordered shorter hours for produce markets and announced a widespread sanitizing efforts in public places in cities and towns nationwide.
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Z 101 Digital
27 March 2020