After many citizens failed to stay at home, police have tightened checkpoints in Vientiane Capital to reduce traffic in the city.

 

After numerous violations of the stay-at-home order were reported since the lockdown began, major roads and intersections have been closed off by police-staffed checkpoints across the capital.

 

Commuters were forced to turn back today as Vientiane police increased their blockades across the city, resulting in videos of traffic bottlenecks and furious motorists circulating on social media.

Despite the stay-at-home order, many residents hit the roads yesterday afternoon to conduct last-minute shopping trips before a new order shutting down supermarkets and other stores took effect.

 

Residents disregarded lockdown restrictions this morning, attempting to attend their office or business, while delivery services were reportedly denied entry via police checkpoints, causing confusion.

 

 

Many people have claimed that the lockdown came on too quickly and that the public was not given enough time to stock up on supplies.

 

One neighbor told the Laotian Times, "We weren't given enough warning." “I needed to grab stuff left at my office, and then I heard that supermarkets would be closed, so I had to drive through checkpoints to get to the supermarket,” she explained.

 

Authorities, on the other hand, claim that the emergency lockdown was required to prevent widespread Covid-19 infection in the community after multiple clothing manufacturers became hotbeds for the virus.

 

Several provinces are currently on level two alert, with other provinces on the verge of reaching level three, according to Dr. Bounfeng Phoummalaysith, Lao Minister of Health, who spoke during the National Taskforce for Covid-19 Prevention and Control's announcement this morning.

 

He claimed that the only way to keep Vientiane Capital from achieving Level Three status, where community transmission of Covid-19 is not limited to a single site or population, and there is evidence that transmission will be broad and continuous, would be to impose a rigorous lockdown.

 

 

Seems the Lao government are totally overreacting to what is still a very minor outbreak (relatively) and an even lower fatality rate. I think there will be some rethinking and backtracking soon.