CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Sunday ordered businesses to close and citizens to remain in their homes in a “social quarantine” affecting six states and the capital, Caracas, starting on Monday to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
FILE PHOTO: Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro wears a protective face mask as he speaks during a meeting at Miraflores Palace in Caracas, Venezuela March 13, 2020. Miraflores Palace/Handout via REUTERS
Venezuela has confirmed 17 cases of the virus and no deaths, but the decay of its public health system after years of economic crisis has raised alarm about whether Maduro’s government is in a position to control its spread.
“At five in the morning, we will enter social quarantine,” Maduro said in televised comments.
Saying the