The project was first analyzed in commissions where a modification was incorporated. It is about the prohibition of the requirement of a health pass to attend meeting or concentration places, whether they are massive, public or private events; the same as the health pass for entering the country, whether foreigners or nationals.
The modification was proposed by the deputy Basilio Núñez (ANR).
Jorge Brítez, Independent national deputy and promoter of the initiative, affirmed that the spirit of the law is to remove the obligation for citizens to use masks. However, he cautioned that use will remain optional.
AGAINST
Hugo Ramírez, a pro-government national deputy, pointed out that the use of face masks is a Health provision and that the virus is real.
“The use of the mask must be mandatory in the closed environment. Also for people who have health problems with underlying diseases or who develop serious cases. That is why I oppose the repeal of the law in closed environments, ”he said.
He pointed out that Paraguay, from 2021 to 2022, registers the entry of 3,500 Germans and everyone is welcomed, but it cannot declare an anarchy that affects the entire country,” he said.
“Our health system will not withstand a new peak of the pandemic,” he warned.
ORIGINAL VERSION
Sebastián Villarejo, national deputy for the PPQ, was in favor of the original version of the project. That is, he only approved the repeal of the use of the mask. Not so with the elimination of the sanitary pass requirement to enter the country.
“This is a law that was never applied. I want to remember that this law that we are repealing condemned those who do not wear masks to fines, social activities and more. It was an absurd law that was never enforced. In Law we cannot have a law that does not comply”, he stated.
The deputy clarified that the Ministry of Health can still establish that the use of masks is mandatory in its dependencies.
Regarding the health pass, he stated that it must also be analyzed by the Foreign Ministry.
“The second issue is interesting, but a debate is necessary, and not only opinions from the Lower House, but also from the Foreign Ministry and the Ministry of Industry and Commerce (MIC) to avoid a problem of legal interpretation,” he said.
