Commander of the Sri Lanka Army Lieutenant General Shavendra Silva urges for discipline within the public in order to eliminate the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic.

However, he expressed confidence in Sri Lanka with regard to overcoming the COVID-19 outbreak.

He said that Sri Lanka could beat the pandemic, just as it defeated terrorism.
 
The commander’s views came during a discussion @HydePark on Ada Derana 24 with Indeewari Amuwatte.

He points out that there are two ways that the novel coronavirus can spread in the country; either it should spread from and within the quarantine centers or through persons who have arrived in the country from various countries without undergoing quarantine.

The Sri Lanka Army, Police, and intelligence agencies continuously monitor the persons who arrived in Sri Lanka from the 1st of March 2020 and inform them to be cautious and undergo self-quarantine, he added.

The Commander said that the government can only tell what the people should do and people have to take the responsibility of acting on it. However, at the end of the day the government is responsible to make sure that this [COVID-19 virus] would not spread, he added.

The curfew imposed on the island is unique and different from a usual police curfew, according to Silva.

Supermarkets, stores, essential services have to keep running during this time period, there are persons who need to get to the Airport and the curfew rules are made flexible for such instances, he pointed out.

The difference is that persons who travel for essential services or for a certain requirement, they do not need to obtain a curfew pass as in previous instances, provided that they produce their identity card and is able to verify the purpose of their travel.

The government has only imposed a curfew to enforce some discipline in the public and thereby by protect them from the virus, he said.