Urgent changes to the law: Misdemeanor orders to be issued for non-compliance with Covid measures

Photo: Tanjug/Sava Radovanovic

The announced urgent amendments to the Law on Protection of the Population from Infectious Diseases are being worked on, which will allow the communal police to issue misdemeanor orders for non-compliance with the prescribed measures for preventing the spread of the Covid 19 infection.

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The legal changes, which should be before the government next Thursday, do not envisage an increase in the amount of fines for non-compliance with the measures, Tamara Stojcevic, Serbian Deputy Secretary of State and member of the working group set up to draft changes to the Law on Protection of the Population from Infectious Diseases, told Tanjug.

A misdemeanor order will allow mandatory fines of 5,000 dinars to be collected from individuals found not wearing a mask, she pointed out.

The law already provides for higher penalties for legal entities and responsible persons who do not provide proper conditions in their facility, such as the distance between tables in hospitality establishments, or the absence of coronavirus stewards, and these will also not change.

Within 8 days, half the fine

The misdemeanor order will function like the one we pay for illegal parking - it will allow payment of half the fine within 8 days, says Stojcevic.

The law will also specify the notion of house quarantine, Stojcevic added.

She stressed that these are only urgent changes, pointing out that this law must be harmonized with recommendations and regulations of the World Health Organization.

She expects that the proposed changes will be presented to the Serbian government next Thursday, together with the budget review proposal, and then be sent to deputies in the Serbian parliament for adoption.

(Telegraf.rs)