The Omicron wave rolls over Europe. Nevertheless, a German neighbor is now relaxing its strict Covid measures. Many hosts protest that this does not apply to them.
Update from January 16, 4:12 p.m.: Despite Omikron, the Netherlands have relaxed their corona measures – but hosts are excluded from this. While shops, hairdressers, sports clubs and sex shops are allowed to open again, restaurants remain closed. This led to protests across the country at the weekend: innkeepers flouted the ban and opened their inns.
Museums, theaters and cinemas are also not allowed to open again: “Everything doesn’t work at once,” said Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Friday. In many places, the illegal opening of pubs was coordinated with the city administrations. Valkenburg’s mayor took the protest as a demonstration, as he explained to the TV station WNL – and demonstrating is a fundamental right.
“We want to set an example,” says café operator Arno de Boer from Zwolle Volkskrant. In Zwolle alone, 30 restaurants opened, as the newspaper reports. 50 cities are said to have participated, mainly in the countryside. In the four largest cities in the Netherlands, the mayors decided to ban the protest: the pubs in Amsterdam, The Hague, Rotterdam and Utrecht remained closed.
Netherlands: Lockdown rules relaxed for German neighbors – “new phase”
First report from January 16, 12:43 p.m.: Amsterdam – After almost four weeks, the Netherlands will end their strict corona lockdown on Saturday – under heavy pressure from companies. The easing comes at a time when the new Omikron variant is on the rise in Europe. However, not all requirements are lifted.
According to the WHO, almost 50 percent of Europeans will be infected with the corona virus by March. Responsible for this: the new omicron variant, which is significantly more contagious than previous types of the virus.
Corona loosening in the Netherlands – despite the omicron wave
Nevertheless, the Netherlands are now relaxing their rules: shops, hairdressers, sports clubs and sex shops can open again from Saturday until 5 p.m., as Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced on Friday in The Hague. In addition, citizens are allowed to receive four visitors at home instead of the previous two. The quarantine obligation falls for those who have been boosted and people who were infected this year. However, restaurants, theatres, cinemas and museums will remain closed until at least January 25th. This distinction sometimes causes outrage among the operators.
Rutte justifies the different assessment by saying that in view of the dramatically increasing number of infections, not all areas can be opened at the same time. “The risk is too great,” the prime minister is quoted as saying. However, he held out the prospect that there could be further easing at the end of the month.
Corona in the Netherlands: gastronomy extremely upset
The Dutch Minister of Health Ernst Kuipers even spoke of a “new phase of the pandemic”. You now have to learn to live with the virus and also take the economic and social situation into account. However, the risk of overloading the health system is still high.
Restaurateurs announced protest against the decision. Some apparently want to open their shops despite the ban. Rutte said: “I understand very well that it feels absolutely unfair.”
The easing comes at a time when the number of infections is also increasing extremely in the Netherlands. More than 35,000 new infections were recorded on Friday. The 7-day incidence is over 1300. In Germany, this value was just under 500 on Saturday. (rjs with dpa)
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