Passengers from Sweden begin hunger strike in quarantine to get answers from authorities

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - After not receiving answers from the Crisis Staff of the Sarajevo Canton today regarding their status and when the 63 passengers from Sweden can expect to leave the quarantine at Bjelave, where they were placed on April 5, and continue isolation in their homes, the passengers decided on a dramatic move - refusing food. 

Earlier, Patria confirmed that some passengers are in poor health due to confinement and the stress of not knowing how long they will remain in quarantine. Among them are elderly passengers and chronic patients who find the situation difficult to bear. All passengers from Sweden will refuse the food brought to them in the morning until official institutions address them and inform them of the next steps. 

From the media, they learned that one family of three is infected with the coronavirus, while the others are negative. The first 14 days of quarantine expired today, and although the federal health minister prescribed a 28-day quarantine, according to World Health Organization recommendations, 14 days are sufficient for isolation measures and the incubation period. This was also done in the case of the first group of passengers from Italy, 18 of whom were placed in quarantine, but only after certain media pressure. 

The president of the Crisis Staff of the Sarajevo Canton, Aida Pilav, did not provide a precise answer today about the status of the passengers from Sweden, despite days of media inquiries. It seems that shifting responsibility is welcome for some institutions. 

In addition to Bosnian citizens who returned from Sweden, citizens who returned from Great Britain and France are also housed at Bjelave. Individuals who violate prescribed measures and are not found by police at their addresses are also placed in forced isolation at Bjelave.