BANGKOK, May 28 — Thailand plans to shorten the five-hour night curfew which now runs from 11 pm to 4 am by an hour under the third phase of relaxation of restrictions imposed due to the Covid-19 pandemic, beginning June 1, according to the National Security Council.
NSC secretary-general Gen Somsak Rungsita, however, he did not say if the curfew will begin an hour later or end an hour earlier.
“Prime Minister Gen Prayuth Chan o-cha will chair the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) meeting tomorrow to discuss lifting restrictions and reopening more businesses as well as the curfew time,” he told a press conference here today.
Somsak said businesses and venues which are expected to resume operation on June 1 include massage parlours and cinemas at shopping malls.
Thailand declared a state of emergency from March 26 to April 30 over the pandemic, imposing restrictions and measures such as closure of schools, entertainment outlets and sports stadiums, and banning international and inter-provincial travel. On April 3, the government also imposed a night curfew as an additional measure to halt the spread of the disease.
The state of emergency was extended to May 31 and then to June 30 to prevent a second wave of Covid-19 infections.
Thailand introduced the first phase of relaxation on May 3, when six types of business and several venues were reopened. It started the second phase of relaxation on May 17.
Meanwhile, CCSA spokesman Thaweesilp Wissanuyothin said Thailand reported 11 new Covid-19 positive cases and no new deaths over the last 24 hours up to noon Thursday, raising the total number of cases to 3,065, with the death tally at 57.
He said all 11 new cases were Thai nationals aged between 27 and 52 who had returned from abroad – four from Kuwait, six from Qatar and one from India, and they are undergoing the 14-day mandatory quarantine at a state facility.
To date, 2,945 cases have recovered and have been discharged from hospital while 64 remain warded.
“Of the 3,065 cases, 2,444 or 79.74 per cent are locally transmitted cases while 621 or 20.26 per cent are imported cases,” he said. — Bernama
