ANTANANARIVO, Oct. 14 (Xinhua) -- Several areas of Mauritius will remain under a curfew from 8:30 p.m. local time on Wednesday to 5:00 a.m. local time on Thursday, local media reported.
The curfew, imposed amid the country's current security situation, will end one hour earlier than the previous curfew announced by Prime Minister Navinchandra Ramgoolam in a televised address Tuesday evening.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family Welfare, the Ministry of Education and Human Resource, and the Ministry of Tertiary Education, Science and Research have separately announced that all childcare centers will be closed on Thursday, while all public and private primary, secondary and higher education institutions will suspend classes on Thursday and Friday.
Mauritius' National Land Transport Authority has also announced that all public bus services across the country will cease operations at 6:00 p.m. local time on Wednesday.
Since Monday evening, incidents have occurred in several localities across the country, during which individuals set fire to various objects, blocked roads, vandalized police stations and shops, and torched vehicles.
The acts of violence come amid tensions over water supply difficulties and public outrage over the shooting and injury of Elodie Thomas, a 27-year-old woman, during an incident involving a police officer on Friday. According to reports, Thomas was shot without any apparent justification. ■