To mask or not

“I’m fully aware that wearing masks is something alien to us. But together we have to do everything so that we can quickly return to resist the spread of the pandemic”, she said.

At the same time, law experts point out that private commercial establishments can, theoretically be allowed to deny people entry especially a situation that threatens the health and safety of other people.

“Property owners like shopping malls or hypermarkets have the right to turn away those who do not wear masks or gloves in order to protect the health and well-being of others on the premises”, said Mohammed al Kiyumi, lawyer.

When contacted Muhsin Naduvil, sales manager with a hypermarket said, “We insist on masks and gloves to protect both customers and workers inside our stores. We started implementing after realising that voluntary measures don’t go far enough”.

Following instructions from Ministry of Commerce and Industry, all supermarkets have ramped up cleaning and sanitation in stores in the recent weeks.

The order from the ministry mandates stores to create physical barriers, where possible, to separate shoppers from billing counters. A statement from the ministry urged commercial centres and shops to avoid overcrowding.

The precautions that were mandated include entry of shoppers in groups, leaving a two-metre physical distancing between one consumer and another at the counter area, and disinfecting and sterilising shopping carts, hand rails and other common areas, as well as providing consumers with sanitizers.