Peter Pellegrini confirmed on Thursday that the elderly woman in Slovakia who contracted coronavirus and passed away recently did not die as a result of the virus but rather from a massive heart attack. At the same time, he warned that the situation surrounding the new pandemic will force hundreds or even thousands of Slovaks to return home to Slovakia from abroad, many from countries such as Italy and Spain where the infection is more widespread. Along with outgoing Interior Minister Denisa Sakova and outgoing Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajcak, Pellegrini asked the returning Slovaks to show self-discipline and respect towards their compatriots. He said that problems will arise with those returnees who refuse to observe the mandatory 14-day quarantine at state facilities such as the Gabcikovo centre, southern Slovakia. Homecomers in the state quarantine are being tested for the coronavirus and, if proved negative, released into quarantine at home.
Miroslav Lajcak added that state officials often encounter choice words from the returnees when asking them to stay in quarantine. "They fail to grasp that this is a measure for the common good," stated the outgoing chief of diplomacy. He pointed out that many want just the sweeter part of the deal - to have the state transport them back home. "Yet they are rankled and complain when having to do what people living in the Slovak Republic consider to be normal: behave in a disciplined fashion," said Lajcak. Homecomers in the state-run quarantine are being tested for the coronavirus, and when testing negative are released into home isolation. Pellegrini urged Slovaks to "back up" the new government of Igor Matovic (OLaNO) and "force" people returning home from abroad to submit to the mandatory quarantine at state facilities.
