Erdoğan: Obligation to wear face masks lifted

Click to read the article in Turkish / Kurdish

President and ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) Chair Recep Tayyip Erdoğan held a press conference with the members of the Health Ministry's Coronavirus Scientific Advisory Board today (April 26).

Erdoğan said, "The obligation to wear face masks in closed places, which has been in effect for nearly 3 years as part of the coronavirus measures, has been completely lifted," adding that the mask mandate will remain in effect in public transportation and health institutions for some time in Turkey until the number of daily cases drops below a thousand.

Noting that "very few countries have succeeded in all these tests" during the COVID-19 pandemic, Erdoğan congratulated the Coronavirus Scientific Advisory Board "who has set an example to the world with its struggle for existence along with the healthcare infrastructure and healthcare workers and with the coordination of the Health Minister."

Music ban still in effect

However, no decision has been made regarding the music ban after midnight, which was introduced as part of the COVID-19 measures and not lifted even though several other measures such as the outdoors mask mandate and contact tracing code requirements were lifted.

Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) İzmir MP Özcan Purçu, in a Parliamentary inquiry on March 22, brought the music ban after midnight into the Parliamentary agenda, briefly saying:

"Most of the musicians make a living on daily earnings and they work in unregistered and unsecure conditions. The bans that have been increasing over the last few years due to the pandemic cause them to lose their sources of income, thus causing them to become poorer."

The MP said that lifting the ban is a must.

CLICK - Health Minister says 'summer without masks is coming'

CLICK - Covid-19: Decreased use of masks may lead to a new peak in Turkey, doctors warn

CLICK - 'Pandemic is not over, dangerous new variants are inevitable'

(TY/SD)