BERLIN, April 7 (Xinhua) -- Wearing of protective masks in the fight against the coronavirus is "highly likely" to become mandatory, Markus Soeder, minister president of German state Bavaria, said on Tuesday.
"Of course there will be some form of mask obligation in the end," said Soeder, who believed this would become necessary in places where people meet with others. So far, wearing of masks is still voluntary in Germany.
Compared with other German states, Bavaria is particularly affected by the coronavirus, showed the data of the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the federal government agency and research institute responsible for disease control and prevention.
However, a "positive trend" could be seen in the development of the spread of the novel coronavirus because of the imposed measures such as a limited curfew, said Soeder.
The measures should not be relaxed too early but should be approached in stages.
Places, where it was "hardly possible to keep the distance" such as restaurants and clubs, would remain closed in Bavaria for the time being. A step-by-step plan for schools, however, was under discussion and there could be different regulations for graduating classes than for primary school pupils.
What would matter most was patience, stressed Soeder, saying "Patience saves lives, impatience endangers lives."
