People walk past pig statues built to commemorate Khmer New Year in 2019. hong chivoan Heng Chivoan
THE Phnom Penh Municipal Administration has urged residents to respect measures implemented during the Khmer New Year to maintain security, safety, and public order.
The request comes after this year’s Wat Phnom Sangkran celebrations were suspended to prevent the spread of Covid-19 infections.
The announcement, signed by Phnom Penh municipal governor Khuong Sreng on Monday, said during Khmer New Year, everyone must obey traffic laws and not drink and drive.
He also said that people should take extra care to safeguard their personal property and take part in fire prevention measures such as paying attention to candles, incense, cooking fires and electricity use.
Gambling, fire crackers and explosives are also banned, he said.
He said the administration urges people to avoid activities such as spraying and throwing water and water balloons, hitting each other or driving motorbikes at high speeds on the street which can endanger people’s lives.
Khuong Sreng also said in another letter dated the same day, that to prevent the spread of Covid-19, the Sangkran preparation at Wat Phnom has been suspended.
He said all citizens should maintain personal hygiene by following the preventive measures recommended by the Ministry of Health.
“The Phnom Penh Municipal Administration hopes that all residents, students and employees will comply with this notice. To authorities receiving this notification, you must collaborate and disseminate this information effectively and take strict legal action against any wrong doers who violate our traditional celebrations,” he said.
On Tuesday, Hen Phearak, a doctor with more than 20 years’ experience in respiratory illnesses, said that Cambodia needed to monitor the situation closely in the run up to Khmer New Year.
He said “Since Covid-19 has not yet spread widely among the community, games can be played in small numbers and small gatherings with local people in communities is relatively safe.
“However if infections became more widespread and there are outbreaks in communities, then all games during Khmer New Year should be suspended because of how easily the disease can spread.
Phearak said studying the Covid-19 outbreak showed that a single person who is infected with the disease and who had not practiced prevention measures, including social distancing can infect up to 400 people every month.
The statistics become dizzying if those people then go on to infect the same number of other people.
He said keeping the recommended 1.5m distance from people was important to stop the masses from being infected. He said people should be especially careful in crowds, such as those during Khmer New Year.
