Russian tourists note disregard for anti-Covid-19 restrictions in Abkhazia

Neither local residents nor tourists wear medical masks; they fail to observe social distance and behave as if there is no pandemic, vacationers from Russia told the "Caucasian Knot".

Lidya Maksimova, a resident of Moscow, had thought for a long time whether to go on vacation during the pandemic or stay at home, but after being vaccinated, she decided to go to Abkhazia.

According to her story, there is not even a mentioning of anti-coronavirus measures in Abkhazia. “We (in Moscow) have ads on all shop doors that the entrance is strictly in masks. There is nothing of the kind here. I went into a store and asked the saleswoman to put on a mask, and she offered me to go to another store,” the woman said.

Olga Postnikova, a resident of Irkutsk, has also stated that she had not seen a single person wearing mask in Sukhumi. “We used a fixed-route minibus and a trolleybus – no one wears a mask. It’s clear that it’s hot, but one’s health is more important. Residents of Abkhazia wouldn’t want to protect themselves or their guests,” the woman said.

Yulia Biryukova, a resident of Tyumen, believes that in Abkhazia, people behave as if there is no pandemic. She herself was not vaccinated, since she had been sick in March.

“I have antibodies. Before the trip, I passed an analysis and made a PCR test, although it is not needed for entering Abkhazia. And this is very bad. I believe that republic’s authorities should protect the local population and tourists and introduce mandatory PCR tests for tourists,” the woman believes.

A resident of Sukhumi named Guram believes that it is necessary not only to tighten the entrance rules for tourists, but also to introduce strict liability for residents of Abkhazia who fail to wear masks and are attending mass weddings and funerals.

“All these measures introduced by the president fail to work; because there is no control or punishment. On the other hand, there is no one in our country to control the enforcement of presidential decrees – the police haven’t enough personnel,” the man said.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on July 6, 2021 at 04:50 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.