Coronavirus Pandemic
CAMBODIAN Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen on Friday said casinos across the kingdom will be allowed to resume operations if they meet requirements for COVID-19 prevention at their facilities, a spokesman and an official said.
“Hun Sen made the decision during a weekly Cabinet meeting after the situation of the COVID-19 had stabilised,’’ government spokesman Phay Siphan wrote on his Facebook page.
Siphan said that the prime minister said all casino operators must ask for permission from the Ministry of Health by attaching with some required conditions for COVID-19 preventive measures.
All casinos are located along border areas, except the NagaWorld casino, which is situated in capital Phnom Penh.
Ros Phearun, deputy director-general of the financial industry department at the Ministry of Economy and Finance, said that there have been a total of 193 licensed casinos in Cambodia and all of them have been shut down since March to stem the COVID-19 spread.
“Casinos can be re-opened only if they meet requirements of preventing COVID-19,” he told Xinhua.
According to the Ministry of Health, the Southeast Asian nation has recorded a total of 141 confirmed COVID-19 cases to date, with 131 patients cured and 10 remaining hospitalized.
In a related issue, Siphan said that during the Cabinet meeting, the government also approved a draft law on the management of commercial gambling, which was designed to control casinos and other gaming facilities in the country.
He said the draft bill set a minimum capital for the investment in a casino and stated measures to combat money laundering and terrorist financing.
According to the spokesman, casinos are licensed to operate in the kingdom in order to help attract foreign tourists, and local people are not allowed to gamble in casinos. (Xinhua/NAN)
– Jul. 3, 2020 @ 12:55 GMT |
Tags: COVID-19: Casinos can be re-opened if they meet requirements – Cambodian PM
