Finland prepares to enforce more mobility restrictions
On Monday, Minister of Finance Katri Kulmuni said that there is likely to be more restrictions on people’s mobility because of coronavirus (koronavirus, in Finnish).
Talking to the national broadcasting company (Yle), Kulmuni said, "Certainly today and tomorrow there will be further action," when asked about how soon the regional border closure anticipated by Prime Minister Sanna Marin will be enforced.
Kulmuni also said it is possible that the nightclubs and bars will be closed.
The Minister of Finance mentioned that there is now no reason for people to travel within the country and for the masses of people to celebrate, "It's important that people do not carry the virus around Finland."
On Saturday, Prime Minister Sanna Marin, in an interview with the program Ylen Ykkösaamu, said that the Government is prepared to restrict people's movement from Uusimaa to other parts of Finland if the situation caused by the Covid-19 worsens.
WHAT DOES IT MEAN IN PRACTICE
Tero Kurenmaa, the head of the police department of the Ministry of the Interior, talked to the Helsingin Sanomat and said details would only come to light if the government made an executive decree on movement restrictions.
According to Kurenmaa, the delimitation should be defined after the Government's decision.
If the government and Parliament enacted an executive order, the police would close the areas as required by the regulation. In practice, police would monitor traffic at the borders of the area to be closed.
Kurenmaa said, “For example, if roads were closed at the borders of Uusimaa, it would not be different from the basic activities of the police. Instead of stopping people at, for example, drunk driving, people would be stopped at the borders on the basis of a curfew. If there is a valid reason to cross the border, we would let go."
Teuvo Pohjolainen, professor emeritus of Public Law at the University of Eastern Finland, talked to Ilta-Sanomat and said that the curfew would be extended only to certain sections of the population and provinces of Finland. The professor points out that in many areas of Finland the virus has not been found at all so far.
Pohjolainen also added, “It should also be noted that, for example, health, police or border guards cannot be prevented from moving.”
FINES COULD BE IMPOSED
Pauli Rautiainen, Assistant Professor of Public Law at the University of Tampere, said that under the Emergency Law, fines could be imposed for violating the law in Finland.
“In Finland, the total amount of daily fines is not precisely defined in the law, but it is possible to set the fine higher than in France,” Rautiainen said.
In France, fines ranging from 135 to 375 euro.