Malaysia will not be the first country to declare a state of emergency over the Covid-19 pandemic, with almost 80 nations having it in place in some form.
Most recently was France, which declared a public health state of emergency on Oct 15, which gave officials greater powers to impose new measures to contain the spread of Covid-19.
Reuters reported the French government as saying that the Covid-19 epidemic constituted a public health disaster, which, by its character and its severity, puts at risk the health of the population.
A few days earlier, Spain declared a state of emergency in Madrid as Italy and Germany recorded over 4,000 and 5,000 daily cases respectively.
Checks revealed thar several other European countries had also previously declared a state of emergency, including Belgium and Romania.
In Asia, Japan declared a state of emergency in April which lasted for a month and a half, ending only on May 25.
According to the Centre for Civil and Political Rights, a Swiss-based NGO, a total of 79 countries have a state of emergency in some form to combat the Covid-19 pandemic. – TheStar
