KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia will not be the only country in the world to declare a state of emergency in response to Covid-19 pandemic that has entered the third wave of infections around the world.
A tracking tool developed by Swiss-based Centre for Civil and Political Rights, a total of 79 states across the world have invoked a state of emergency that entails several forms of measures in response to the pandemic.
Earlier this month, BBC reported that the Spanish Government has ordered a 15-day state of emergency in an effort to reduce the Covid-19 infection rates in Madrid and nearby cities.
Reuters also reported that France last Wednesday had reimposed a public health state of emergency following 'sudden and spectacular acceleration' in the spread of the Covid-19 virus.
The French government, in a statement announcing the state of emergency, said that the pandemic constituted a public health disaster.
"It justifies the declaration of a state of emergency so that measures can be adopted ... which are strictly proportionate to the public health risks," it said.
The measures announced by French President Emmanuel Macron included a curfew that came into force starting midnight Oct 17 in and around Paris, including eight other metropolitan cities.
When the pandemic was at its peak earlier in the year, New Zealand also declared a state of national emergency that came into force on March 25, giving the government additional powers to implement a lockdown nationwide.
"The state of emergency declaration allows civil defence emergency management controllers to take the necessary steps, if they need to, to ensure conservation and supply of food, fuel and other essential supplies, regulate land, water and air traffic, close roads and public places, evacuate any premises including any public place and if necessary to exclude people or vehicles from any premises or place," New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Arden had said.
The state of emergency across New Zealand was lifted in mid May.
Japan was also among the countries that had declared nationwide state of emergency following the worsening Covid-19 outbreak.
The state of emergency, which came into force in April, was lifted the following month after a marked fall in new cases in Tokyo and other regions.
It was reported in March this year that six European countries have declared a state of emergency under Article 15 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The countries were Armenia, Estonia, Georgia, Latvia, Moldova and Romania.
In Malaysia, speculation is rife that the country plans to declare a state of emergency that entails the proroguing of the Parliament, which will enable the government to focus on measures to curb the pandemic.
This follows events that took place yesterday (Friday), where Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin was reported to have chaired a special cabinet meeting at Putra Perdana in Putrajaya in the morning.
Following the meeting that concluded around noon, Muhyiddin had flown to Pahang where he was granted an audience with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah at Istana Abdul Aziz in Indera Mahkota, Kuantan.
Istana Negara in a statement today said Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah will be consulting the Malay Rulers on the proposal raised by Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin yesterday.
"Following the session yesterday, Al-Sultan Abdullah has agreed to consult fellow Malay Rulers at Istana Negara soon to discuss and deliberate the proposal raised by Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin," said Comptroller of the Royal Household for Istana Negara Datuk Ahmad Fadil Shamsuddin.
According to sources, the special meeting among Malay Rulers are scheduled to be held at Istana Negara tomorrow.