KUALA LUMPUR: THE authorities can bring criminal charges against those who break mandatory home quarantine and put others at risk, such as in the case of the Sivagangga cluster.
Experts agree that apart from compounds, other laws can be levelled against these people.
Lawyer Mohamed Haniff Khatri Abdulla said the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act 1988 (Act 342) and its (Measures within Infected Local Areas) Regulations 2020 and the Police Act 1967(Act 344) provided a degree of punishment.
"The nation is in its infancy of legal literacy and responsibility, so, action must be taken against the index case here by way of compounds or court fines. But prison is not necessarily the solution."
"If the authorities jail a person, it has to ensure the prison has separate facilities to cater for those who are Covid-19 positive or those awaiting test results."
Haniff and other lawyers did, however, say it appeared that no one had yet to be imprisoned for clauses under the act.
Nevertheless, he said it was better for the community to band together and take a class-action suit against the index case for the grievances caused.
"If a cluster causes a state of emergency resulting in the closure of schools and mosques, this can be taken as a basis to sue for damages," Haniff said.
In this instance under common law, Haniff said, one did not have to prove that the person was negligent or had intent as the disease originated from him.
This, he said, was based on the Law of Tort, which was passed down from the Rylands vs Fletcher case in the United Kingdom.
In the 1868 case, the defendants had employed independent contractors to construct a reservoir on their land.
The latter had found disused mines during digging works, but had failed to seal them.
The contractors proceeded to fill the reservoir with water, and as a result, it flooded through the mine shafts into the plaintiff's mines on the adjoining property.
The plaintiff secured a verdict at Liverpool Assizes and the Court of Exchequer Chamber held the defendant liable and the House of Lords affirmed their decision.
Lawyer Lim Wei Jiet said those who intentionally spread Covid-19 could be charged under Section 269 of the Penal Code. They could be jailed for six months if found guilty.
Epidemiologist Professor Dr Datuk Awang Bulgiba Awang Mahmud said cultivating good health practices and awareness must be done hand in hand with stricter law enforcement.
"Apathy can cause cases like the Sivagangga cluster (to emerge), so enforcement is needed.
"In the long run, we need (continuous) health education until it (the new norm) becomes a culture."
Recently, a permanent resident in Kedah behind the Sivagangga cluster had forced the authorities to impose lockdown on several areas in the state.
The index patient from a restaurant in Napoh had broken home quarantine and had been identified for causing at least 40 others to be infected with Covid-19, some of which are third-generation cases.