Government extends state of emergency due to COVID-19 until May 31

Last Saturday, it was announced that the Government led by Pedro Castillo ordered the extension of the state of national emergency for a period of 31 days due to the pandemic and the new health regulations that will govern starting in May.

In this regard, Supreme Decree No. 041-2022-PCM establishes that this measure enters into force as of Sunday, May 1, 2022, whose validity will be extended until the 31st of the same month.

In view of this, the Presidency of the Council of Ministers renewed the deadlines established in principle by D.S. No. 016-2022-PCM, on February 28, 2022, and D.S. No. 030-2022-PCM, issued in March, which declared the limits necessary to maintain social order, disrupted by the consequences of the coronavirus waves suffered by Peru.

It should be noted that during the period that the law is in force, the exercise of several rights protected by the 1993 Political Constitution will be restricted, including liberty and security of person, the inviolability of the home, and freedom of assembly and transit in the territory, which are included in the chapter of the Charter Magna dedicated to the fundamental rights enjoyed by citizens.

In this new document published by the Executive, it argues that the amendment of article 3 of the supreme decree issued in February, which particularly established provisions such as the maintenance of the distance of one meter for safety, as well as the mandatory use of masks for both open and closed spaces, without any place for appeal, and other measures.

This modification is due to the recent announcement by the Ministry of Health, which states that, as of May, the optional use of the mask will be allowed in public places, complying with certain regulations.

D.S. No. 041-2022-PCM mentions that “in departments that have 80% COVID-19 vaccination coverage for people aged 60 and over with 3 doses, and 80% COVID-19 vaccination coverage for people aged 12 and over with 2 doses, it is optional to wear masks in open spaces, provided that it is guaranteed physical or bodily distancing, measures that could be modified according to the epidemiological context”.

RIGHTS THAT ARE SUSPENDED

Right to liberty: subjects of rights may engage in any kind of activity, which involves the exercise of other fundamental rights other than freedom, as long as they do not violate with it the norms that make up public order, good customs and those that are imperative in nature.

Inviolability of domicile: Rights subjects may prevent any other person from entering their home to carry out investigations, searches or other grounds if they do not authorize it or when third parties do not have a court order. They may not prevent it, however, in the event of a flagrante delicto or very serious danger of its perpetration.

Freedom of assembly: Subjects of rights may group, congregate or assemble, without prior notice, both in private places and open to the public as long as they do so peacefully. On the contrary, meetings in public places or roads require advance notice to the authority, which may prohibit them only for proven reasons of safety or public health.

Freedom of transit within the national territory: The subjects of rights, in principle, can move freely, within the national territory in which they have their domicile and also outside it, which implies being able to choose where to live. Except for health reasons or by court order or by application of the Aliens Act.

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