If you think you can go out and enjoy the beautiful weather anytime soon if you live in Australia, you are sorely mistaken. The reason for this is because the government is now implementing stricter rules for quarantine to the point that it will become "draconian" if citizens would not cooperate.
What Will Be Left Open
Supermarkets, petrol stations, pharmacies, convenience stores, freight and logistics, as well as home delivery, will be the only ones allowed to continue operations moving forward in the country of Australia.
Schools are also still open in all three states and will be back on Monday, with Victoria school holidays being the only exception that will open its doors on Tuesday.
NSW Premier Glady's Berejiklian and Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews made it clear to all that their states would be pursuing more drastic measures.
The Reason For This Drastic Change in Life
Besides avoiding the spread of the coronavirus to more and more Australian citizens, it is a preventive measure for hospitals not to be overwhelmed, and more people would die because of this. This was the idea that Mr. Andrews has said in one of his statements.
Ms. Bejeriklian also said she would "update NSW tomorrow morning about the impacts and our plans following the National Cabinet."
Prime Minister Scott Morrison had this to say to ABC before the National Cabinet, "If Australians choose not to self-isolate, if Australians choose to not observe the medical advice of keeping the distance that we've recommended, then we'd obviously be forced to take very draconian measures in shutting down,"
NSW has already moved past the 500 confirmed case mark, the count of infected as of 8:00 PM Saturday has reached over 533 while in Victoria, an alarming 296 cases.
Schools Are Preparing For a More Digital Approach
Teachers across all states are now scrambling to make their work more digitalized to avoid direct contact with students and are currently revising their teaching methods to cope with the pandemic.
Mr. Andrews had this to say about their schools, "the decision whether to re-open schools after the Term 1 holidays will ... be determined following advice from the chief health officer".
ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr would follow the recommendations at the Cabinet meeting but has already told Education Minister Yvette Berry to prepare for online classes until the end of this term to make sure that there is still something to teach the younger population.
Students in ACT schools were told to stay at home from Tuesday. Face-to-face teaching is not recommended but will be allowed for students who need it the most. The ACT Government, however, did not say how those children would be classified.
Mr. Morrison said his children would continue to take classes still and go to school. Also, any decision regarding the continuation and or closure of schools should be from health advice.
Coronavirus "Red Zones" Most Probably Will Go On Lockdown
Several political leaders have considered urgent and draconian powers that would allow authorities to shut down the zones that are classified as "red zones." This would mean that officers will prevent residents from traveling to lessen the spread of the coronavirus.
The Prime Minister, premiers and chief ministers will discuss how to implement emergency restrictions at the National Cabinet meeting.
Mr. Morrison had this to say about what happened in Bondi Beach yesterday, "What happened at Bondi Beach yesterday was not OK and served as a message to federal and state leaders that too many Australians are not taking these issues seriously enough,"
"If Australians don't play their part, they can't then believe that the system won't come under greater stress," Mr. Morrison said.
"And this is why we're trying to be so clear about this."
