Public displays of affection (PDA) are currently banned in parts of Manila, the Philippine national capital, under newly reinforced coronavirus restrictions, a Philippine National Police (PNP) spokesman said on Wednesday.
“Automatic violations” of the reimposed lockdown measures in Metro Manila include “hugging, holding hands, and kissing outside the house,” PNP spokesman Brig. Gen. Ildebrandi Usana told the Pilipino Star Ngayon, a Philippine newspaper, on March 10.
“They can’t sit together and talk closely. They can’t go to crowded places. People know what is prohibited,” Usana said.
“This is a mere reiteration of [a] previous advisory from the [government]. Even since [the] start of restrictions, [public displays of affection] are really forbidden,” Usana reminded the public.
People caught violating the PDA ban will receive a warning for their first offense and could be arrested for subsequent violations, according to the PNP spokesman.
“Infection happens to families, it can happen to anyone, anywhere,” Usana said on Wednesday.
“And if you love your spouse, your children, you have to be conscious of the minimum health and safety protocols,” he added.
The Philippines currently has the second-highest coronavirus caseload in Southeast Asia. The nation recorded 603,308 infections and 12,545 deaths from the Chinese coronavirus as of March 10.
Philippine government officials recently reimposed lockdown measures in certain sections of Metro Manila amid a spike in new coronavirus cases across the urban center, which is the nation’s most densely populated area and home to nearly 13 million people. In an effort to enforce the new restrictions, the Philippine Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) is urging municipal governments in Metro Manila, which contains 16 cities, “to enact ordinances penalizing violations of the health rules,” the Philippine Inquirer reported on March 11.
“We are directing [the] local governments to pass penal ordinances so our stubborn countrymen [will comply with] the minimum public health [measures],” DILG Secretary Epimaco Densing III said in a radio interview on March 9.
“We have already directed our field officers to convince the different councils to pass such ordinances,” Densing said, adding that DILG would also consult with Metro Manila mayors and vice mayors. In addition to “jail time or a fine,” Densing suggested municipal governments penalize lockdown violators with community service.
The government of Metro Manila’s Quezon City said on Thursday it was weighing whether to issue an ordinance “reducing capacity in churches, restaurants, and other public places,” in an effort to curb the spread of the capital’s newly detected coronavirus cases.