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Masks without a show in Paris

Text: Vyacheslav Prokofiev (“Rossiyskaya Gazeta”, Paris) If earlier Paris (I mean its inhabitants) had its own unique face, now, wherever you look, there are only masks. On the streets, in the subway and, of course, in all shops, museums and so on. Mostly surgical disposables. But there are also multi-colored fabric, which, after being washed, can be worn many times. The only exception to this rule that completely depersonalizes people is restaurants, cafes and bars, where it is allowed to sit at a table, to lower the protective veil.

True, it is not excluded that this liberty will, by and large, be done away with. This is precisely the conclusion that can be drawn from the statement of the local health minister Olivier Veran, stunned by the Parisians. From his words, it followed that the harmful COVID-19 is gaining strength again, and its second coming is a very real and close prospect. The number of infected is growing. Over the past Saturday, almost 17 thousand new cases were registered in the country, and this is the highest level of daily increase in infected people since the quarantine was canceled in mid-May. In a number of large cities, almost all the “red” control figures have been reached or exceeded.

And among them was Paris with all the suburbs, the so-called “small crown” of the capital. Here, there are now 263 carriers per 100 thousand of the population, the share of intensive care beds occupied by seriously ill patients with this diagnosis has approached 35 percent (this is with an alarming figure of 30 percent).

In this regard, the minister warned: if during these few days the situation does not change for the better, then the capital runs the risk of falling into the zone of the “maximum level of danger”, which means that Parisians will have to give up family holidays, parties with or without reason. … Bars, gymnasiums will be closed, the fate of restaurants will also be in question. By the way, not only in Paris, but in many other cities, such as Lyon, Grenoble, Toulouse, where the situation is no better than the capital.

It is not excluded that such a course of events could cause even greater discontent in the country, as it already happened in Marseille, and he, together with Aix-en-Provence, was the first to be among the “super dangerous” from the point of view of the central authorities. There, all restaurants and bars were closed by order for two weeks. And they did it without the consent of the municipality, thus causing a wave of indignation. For example, the mayor of the city, Michel Rubirola, wrote on Twitter: “Nothing justifies such a decision. I am opposed to the residents of Marseille becoming victims of political demarches that no one understands.” At the same time, in the city itself, some refer to the fact that the head of the municipality, a representative of the Europe Ecology Green party, in the summer local elections bypassed both the right-wing “Republicans” and the “marching” from the pro-presidential party.

The head of the Provence-Alpes-Cote d’Azur region, Renaud Musselier, spoke in about the same spirit, calling the dictatorship of Paris “collective punishment.” He even filed a lawsuit to cancel this measure, but his claim was rejected.

In Marseille itself, outraged owners and staff of restaurants, bars and other catering outlets staged a real opposition. At the initiative of their union leader Bernard Marty, they staged a demonstration and even threatened to block the highways leading to this second largest metropolis in France. The famous all over the country chef Philip Echebet also made a similar protest demarche. He called on all French catering workers, who, due to antiquarian measures, risk being unemployed, to organize “noise concerts” on Fridays, for which they use professional equipment – pans, colanders and, of course, pots.

Madrid on state of siege

Text: Yuri Kogalov The Spanish authorities have closed Madrid and nine other municipalities in the metropolitan area for entry and exit. Restrictive measures introduced due to the second wave of coronavirus began to operate on Friday at 22:00 local time. The isolation is supposed to last for two weeks. However, this period can be repeatedly extended, as was the case in the spring with the state of emergency (“anxiety regime”, as the Spaniards themselves say).

So far, the restrictions imposed have not greatly affected the lives of ordinary people. All the same weekend. People, as usual, walk the streets, parks, sit in cafes and restaurants. True, the police have increased their work, they now not only monitor the law and order, but also ensure that people do not leave Madrid or another city that is on the black list of the Ministry of Health without a good reason. An exception is made only for those who go to work, study, to the bank, for an exam or tests that cannot be postponed, returns home, goes to care for the elderly or minors.

As ordinary Madrid residents tell the local media, “life in In a sense, it continues, “” You can go out of the house, go to the park, the museum or to work, “this is much better than it was in the spring, when everyone was in quarantine.

The owners of bars and restaurants are most dissatisfied, they are forced to close their establishments at 23.00 and finish taking orders an hour earlier (this is a rather tangible blow to their income, since many Spaniards go to dinner at restaurants only at 9 pm). “Let them explain to me why the virus is dangerous at 23.00, but not at 19.00,” dissatisfied visitors echo them.

Hoteliers also complain. This decision ruined all expectations for the next weekend. They must be long due to the fact that October 12 is Spain Day. On this occasion, usually a lot of people come to the capital. All reservations are now canceled.

Most of all Madrid people are now worried about how long these restrictions will last, and whether they will be effective. However, they are glad that at least the confrontation between the central authorities of Spain and the government of the Madrid Autonomous Community has ended. Disputes about the need to isolate cities where outbreaks of coronavirus were noted went on for two weeks until this issue was put to a vote last Wednesday. Representatives of most regions supported the idea of ​​the Minister of Health of the Kingdom of Salvador Ilya to close cities where more than 500 cases of COVID-19 infection have been registered per 100 thousand inhabitants.

It should be noted that initially the Ministry of Health proposed to isolate settlements with a population of more than 20 thousand people, where the coronavirus was detected in at least 100 people (those same 500 cases per 100 thousand inhabitants), 10 percent of tests for COVID-19 gave a positive result. and in intensive care units, 20 percent of beds are occupied. If this option were approved, a number of more cities across Spain would have to be closed. But during the controversy, these criteria were changed to 500 infected per 100 thousand inhabitants (that is, only large cities will be isolated) and 35 percent of occupied beds in hospitals (the percentage of positive tests for coronavirus remained the same).

Although the head of government of the Autonomous Community of Madrid, Isabel Diaz Ayuso, in every possible way delayed the adoption of this decision, assuring that the region would cope on its own (freedom of movement in some areas was limited), the central authorities pushed through the agreement to close the cities. “With each passing day, infections are increasing. This is out of control. You have 40 percent of cases in all of Spain. It will not be possible to limit only some areas,” Ilya said.

And Madrid was forced to comply. The cities were isolated, but Ayuso filed an appeal with the National Court of Justice. She asks to suspend the declaration until the court makes its decision on the merits. At the same time, the Madrid community accuses the central government of Pedro Sánchez of interfering in the internal affairs of the region “through the cruel use of the Inter-Territorial Council of the National Health System” (it was its members – advisers to the heads of regions on health issues – who voted last Wednesday). According to Ayuso, it is the regional authorities that must decide what measures to take, especially since the previously introduced restrictions have already begun to take effect. In addition, a decision imposed from above threatens with serious economic losses. The measures introduced affect 71 percent of the region’s population, i.e. over 4.7 million people, resulting in a loss of 750 million euros every week.

By the way, other Spanish cities may be isolated soon. The authorities of Castile and León, a region bordering the Madrid Autonomy, admit that in some of their settlements, the level of infection has approached the threshold set by the Ministry of Health. With the current increase in the number of cases, it will soon be overcome. In this regard, city mayors asked citizens to spend more time at home in order to minimize the risks of infection.

And in Andalusia, which, like Madrid, opposed the isolation of cities, was involved in solving the coronavirus problem the police. Law enforcement officers now walk around homes throughout the region to make sure sick people stay home.

Lockdown neighborhoods

Text: Alexander Gasyuk The largest metropolitan area of ​​the USA – New York – is preparing for the next introduction of restrictions, starting this Tuesday. According to The New York Post, “lockdown 2.0” may be introduced in areas of the city where the incidence of COVID-19 is several times higher than the national rates.

According to the New York City Hall, the new bans are severe will not yield to the restrictions already introduced in the Big Apple at the peak of the pandemic last spring. Thus, the city authorities plan to outlaw any gatherings of more than 10 people together and to close all non-vital enterprises. In the event of violation of the epidemiological safety standards established by the municipal Ministry of Education, private schools and kindergartens will also cease their activities. At the same time, of course, no one canceled the current requirements for social distancing.

“For the first time since the recovery period, the city may impose immediate restrictions in areas where progress is not made by Monday evening,” said New York Mayor Bill de Blasio’s office.

Specific city blocks, subject to “closure” are not yet named. However, based on publicly available statistics, the areas most affected by the repeated outbreak of COVID-19 are mostly located in Brooklyn and Queens.

It is obvious that in the case of the introduction of an electoral lockdown in some of the most “infected” areas, the authorities of the metropolis will not do without restrictions on the movement of their inhabitants. How this will be done is currently unknown. At the same time, commentators recall the introduction of the US National Guard into New York last March and do not exclude a repetition of this scenario to close off certain parts of the city.

The option of re-imposing restrictions is also possible in San Francisco, the first major US city to establish a total lockdown last spring. Then, the mayor of London, Nicole Breed, who issued a restrictive decree, was harshly criticized by many for such an extraordinary step and the loss of $ 3.6 billion by the economy of the metropolis. However, the significantly lower mortality rate from the coronavirus compared to other American cities in the state of California dot the i’s. Upon learning that US President Donald Trump had caught COVID-19, the Mayor of San Francisco said that “the bell rang again” and “no one is safe.”

Albion is being closed gradually

Text: Ariadna Rokossovskaya V In Great Britain, about a quarter of the country’s inhabitants are forced to put up with serious tightening of security measures. In the coming days, the decision on the lockdown may be made by the London authorities.

The country recorded a record number of coronavirus infections over the weekend since mass testing began. 12.8 thousand confirmed cases, of which, according to the authorities, part of them refers to the previous week, when, due to a technical error, not all data were taken into account. Prime Minister Boris Johnson prefers to close certain areas where there is a sharp increase in the number of infections, rather than introduce a nationwide lockdown. Therefore, in some regions, for example, in the north of England and Northern Ireland, enhanced security measures have been introduced. Since October 3, in Liverpool, Warrington, Hartlepool and Middlesbrough, residents can only communicate with their family circle. Since October 5, these measures are being introduced in several more cities, where the number of daily infections has exceeded the critical indicator: 50 per 100 thousand inhabitants. Already 17 million Britons, that is, about 25 percent of the country’s population, put up with this or that tightening of security measures. In Wales, lockdown cosThere are two thirds of the region’s residents.

The authorities of the British capital are also considering the option of switching to a regime of self-isolation, but can not agree on whether to introduce restrictions in some areas, or, as Mayor Sadiq Khan insists, to apply them on a “London-wide scale”. The fact is that today in areas such as Redbridge, the number of cases exceeds the critical level, while in Bromley, Kensington and Chelsea the situation remains safe. Sadiq Khan announced last week that the capital as a whole is coming to a head. According to local media reports, the government is likely to announce plans for drastic measures in the coming days. It is expected that additional restrictions on coronavirus will be introduced on a citywide scale to stop the spread of the virus, including among passengers on public transport.

You can now find out how the regime has changed in a particular locality from a special application developed by the British health service. It was released on September 24, and in the first three days it was downloaded by 12.4 million users in the country, which, according to the head of the Ministry of Health Matt Hancock, is “the fastest application in the history of Britain.” The application sends a notification about the introduction or cancellation of additional security measures in the user’s place of residence. In addition, a barcode reader, which will be installed at the entrances to all pubs and restaurants in the country, will allow you to receive data that at the same time the user was in the institution with a person who was diagnosed with coronavirus.