People in quarantine facilities seen mingling, sparking concern

Photographs have emerged over social media platforms which show people in government designated quarantine facilities mingling with each other, sparking concern.

In a press conference at the National Emergency Operations Center on Saturday night, government spokesperson Mabrouq Azeez said a few such cases had come to the attention of the authorities.

Mabrouq said that people in quarantine had been informed of specific guidelines on how to comport their actions during quarantine, and that they were not allowed to venture out and socialize with one another.

He said that they were allowed to venture out to just outside the doorway or their rooms, or venture out to the beach area in front of their rooms, if they wished, but only during designated hours.

They are not allowed to mingle with each other, he stressed.

“We are making decisions regarding action in response to known cases of such incidents. They are not allowed to behave that way,” said Mabrouq.

It comes after two Maldivian nationals who had been quarantined at designated government facilities after travelling back from the UK tested positive for COVID-19, marking the first cases for Maldivian nationals to be infected with the virus.

The first, a 38-year-old male, had tested positive on March 28. He had been in quarantine at Holiday Island Resort since his return from the UK on March 22.

The second, identified only as a Maldivian national, had tested positive this Sunday. The person had been in quarantine at the Royal Island Resort since arriving from the UK.

All inbound air passengers, with the exception of tourists with resort bookings, are now required to undergo 14 days in quarantine in a government designated facility.

There are currently 826 people in quarantine facilities.

17 have tested positive for the virus in Maldives; including the two Maldivian nationals, and two Italian nationals whose test results were received after they departed from Maldives, on March 27. The rest are all foreign nationals either vacationing or working at resorts or safaris.

11 have since recovered, and the number of active cases is now 4.