Ukraine Health Minister to Join Wuhan Evacuees In Quarantine Following Local Protests

Ukrainian Minister of Health Zoryana Skaletska announced she was going to a medical center in the village of Novi Sanzhary in the Poltava region to spend a fortnight in quarantine with the evacuees from Wuhan.

Skaletska reported this on her Facebook page.

She noted that she would stay in the same room and in the same conditions as the 45 evacuated Ukrainians and 27 foreigners. Skaletska will have an internet connection and will continue to carry out her duties.

"I hope that my presence will calm both those who are [protesting] in Novi Sanzhary and the rest of the country," Skaletska wrote.

The Minister assured that the authorities had carefully prepared for the evacuation and made the conditions of the evacuees' stay absolutely safe.

However, despite the attempts of Ukrainian authorities to explain that these people bear no danger, protests erupted on February 20 in the village 30 kilometers from Poltava. They allegedly followed a fake email from the health ministry claiming that "five cases of coronavirus were detected on the day the plane landed in Ukraine". The Security Service of Ukraine later reported that the email was sent from outside Ukraine. Local villagers were, however, quick to spread "the news" on the village group chat.

READ MORE: Ukrainians Caught at Heart of Coronavirus Epidemic to be Evacuated to Ukraine

The bus carrying 72 evacuees set off for a sanatorium in the center of Ukraine after their plane landed in Kharkiv on the morning of February 20. All evacuees are reportedly healthy and free of coronavirus symptoms, and were accompanied by doctors during their trip from China.

Locals started blocking the road in the morning and tried not to let the buses with the evacuees pass, but law enforcement officers managed to push them out and cleared the road.

Later, it emerged that 9 law enforcers and one civilian were injured during the protests. The local police department has launched a probe into the events.

“The events of today, the panic and rejection, negativity and aggression shocked me to the core. Even more so, they shocked people evacuated from China. So I call on you to express support and gratitude for agreeing to spend two weeks in isolation for the sake of all of us,” she said.

The head of the Health Ministry also reminded the society that the evacuees from China are fellow Ukrainians.

“They are no strangers to us. We live in one country and we must take care of their health and safety,” she added.