Cabinet deliberates reopening of airports

September 4, 2020 at 12:17 PM

The reopening of airports in Sri Lanka was discussed at the weekly cabinet meeting held on Wednesday (02), Minister of Health Pavithra Wanniarachchi said.

Speaking to reporters, the Minister said the Government was still deliberating the reopening of airports.

It was also decided to allocate more time to assess the COVID-19 situation and potential risk factors in the country.

Wanniarachchi further said as the Minister of Health, it was her priority to ensure the safety of all citizens and that she cannot jeopardize the safety of Sri Lankans by opening the airports for foreign nationals.

Nearly 26, 000 Sri Lankans who were stranded overseas due to the coronavirus pandemic have been repatriated so far, while 58,000 more Sri Lankans are yet to be repatriated, she said.

The Minister said despite being pressurised by foreign nations to expedite the repatriation of stranded Sri Lankans, all of them cannot be repatriated at the same time as it could risk the lives of Sri Lankan citizens. (Newswire)