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First night of curfew for 20 million French people

2020-10-17T19:19:00.747Z


The inhabitants of Île-de-France and eight other metropolises are prohibited from moving between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. from this Saturday.


"

Everyone at home from 9:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m.

": some 20 million French people are preparing to live their first evening under curfew this Saturday, a measure taken by the government to stem the epidemic of coronavirus which is rebounding strongly, with the risk of saturating hospitals.

This nocturnal confinement strikes the inhabitants of Île-de-France and the metropolitan areas of Lyon, Lille, Toulouse, Montpellier, Saint-Etienne, Aix-Marseille, Rouen and Grenoble.

To read also: Curfew certificate: download the travel form

Exempt are persons who return from work or from a place of study or go there, claim a health requirement, must visit a loved one in a situation of dependency, babysit, respond to a court summons or administration or walk their pet within a radius of one kilometer.

On the way or at the exit of stations and airports, plane and train tickets will prevail.

In the 18th arrondissement of Paris, at the crossroads of rue Duhesme and rue Joseph Dijon, the bars put their terraces away and ask customers to return home, 10 minutes from the curfew.

Slowly, everyone complies, the friends kiss before they go their separate ways.

In less than five minutes, the curtains are drawn and the residents hurry to return to their apartments.

Crossing of rue Duhesme and rue Joseph Dijon, 18th arrondissement of Paris.

Julien Boudisseau / Le Figaro

This measure once again weakens these traders, already subjected to severe strain with the confinement, and for whom the second part of the evening represents a significant part of their turnover.

"

A curfew at 9 p.m. is anything, it's a bastard schedule

", protests Hubert de Faletans, owner of the restaurant L'Esprit du Sud-Ouest in Blagnac, near Toulouse, whose 120 covers have increased to 80 due to the health protocol already in place.

A restaurant starts working between 7:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m.

We do not understand why we did not put the curfew at 11:00 p.m.

at least that we can really do a first service

”, adds this restaurant owner who makes the bulk of his turnover after 9:00 pm.

To read also: Yves Camdeborde's appeal to restaurateurs: "Let's stay open, otherwise there is no more life!"

"

I'm sick of it, they change every five minutes.

They sail on sight and it gets tiring.

This closure at 9:00 p.m. will have no effect (on the epidemic).

They are not attacking the right place

”, indignant Gérard, the manager of a Toulouse restaurant in the station district.

Almost every day, I have one or two young people who come by asking me for a job.

I've never seen that,

”he warns, worried about the economic consequences.

The world of culture is also in shock after the Prime Minister's veto to ease the curfew for this sector hit hard by the health crisis.

And tries to adapt by offering schedules, early in the morning or at the end of the day.

To read also: "Macron is killing the theaters", stupor and despair of the culture in the face of the curfew

As during confinement, people leaving during curfew will need to bring travel certificates (to print or download to their phone).

Any offender will be liable to a fine of 135 euros then, in the event of a double repeat offense (three frauds in total), to six months in prison and a fine of 3,750 euros.

Some 12,000 police and gendarmes, plus municipal police teams, must be deployed to enforce these rules.

The police were, however, invited to show “

pedagogy

” and “

discernment

”, by evaluating “

the good or bad faith

” of the people checked.

The only measure to avoid re-containment

As in a New Year's Eve atmosphere, in the center of Paris and in the other big cities concerned, thousands of consumers enjoyed until late Friday, a last round of bars, a drink on the terrace or a dinner in town.

Scheduled for at least four weeks, the curfew could be extended if the epidemic does not show signs of abating.

President Macron has already mentioned the date of December 1.

Read also: These French people who will not respect the curfew and denounce "an intolerable intrusion"

While the All Saints holidays begin, the government has not, however, prohibited travel within the country, but some territories wanted to anticipate an influx of tourists, such as the seaside resort of Touquet, which will in turn introduce a cover. -fire.

The government defends curfews as the only measure to avoid a re-containment, at a time when the indicators evaluating the coronavirus epidemic are deteriorating everywhere in Europe.

Source: lefigaro

All news articles on 2020-10-17

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