President given $4,600 virus fine over selfie on beach
The president of Chile has had to issue an awkward mea culpa and slap himself with a fine for breaching his own coronavirus restrictions after a photo surfaced online earlier this month.
Sebastián Piñera has had to cough up $4,600 (US$3,500) after he took a selfie on the beach without wearing a mask.
The president was forced to apologise after the photo of him with an unidentified woman – also pictured without a mask – went viral on social media.
The South American country has strict rules mandating the wearing of face coverings as it battle to contain the spread of the virus.
Violations of Chile’s mask law are punishable with penalties that include fines and even jail terms, the BBC noted.
Mr Piñera explained he had been walking alone along the beach near his home in the posh Chilean seaside town of Cachagua when a woman recognised him and asked for a photo together.
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The selfie shows the president and the woman standing very near to one another on a sunny day.
The gaffe-prone Piñera was previously photographed at a pizza party on the night protests over inequality broke out in Santiago last year. He was later seen posing for pictures at the square that had been the hub of the demonstrations after the pandemic forced protesters to stay at home.
The virus peaked in Chile in May and June during winter, then subsided through November. However cases have been on the rise again prompting new restrictions and quarantines.
To date, Chile has recorded more than 583,300 known cases of Covid-19 and more than 16,100 deaths, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.
with Reuters
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