A Christmas party with loved ones - that was the goal of German politics for a long time.
But high numbers of infections could shake the plans.
A hard lockdown threatens.
+
An oversized model of a corona virus is in the Martinus Church in the Renningen district of Malmsheim
© Marijan Murat / dpa
The number of
corona cases
in Germany is at a new high
Politicians and scientists are therefore pushing for another
hard lockdown
Several federal states have
already withdrawn
easing
on public holidays
This article is continuously updated.
Munich - For a long time it looked as if
a Christmas with friends and family would be possible
despite
Corona
.
The
partial lockdown
decided at the beginning of November
should enable a normal Christmas party in the family under the given circumstances.
But the steadily increasing
number
of
corona cases
last week has now
triggered
a new debate about tougher measures on the
holidays
.
Voices from politics and science are increasingly pressing for
tightening of
the measures.
Corona measures at Christmas: CSU politician Dobrindt defends easing
Although, according to the
ZDF
"Politbarometer", almost every second German is in favor of stricter rules in the fight against the corona virus, CSU regional group leader
Alexander Dobrindt
defended
the relaxation of contacts over Christmas.
Despite the persistently high number of
infections
, the
CSU politician
said
on Thursday on
ARD
- “Morgenmagazin”: “It remains that you
have to have the chance to meet
at
Christmas
”.
Instead of
restricting
contacts
,
Dobrindt
wants to
advocate increased security measures, such as
distance teaching
in schools, to enable a
Christmas
with the family.
Many politicians against easing at Christmas due to the increasing number of corona cases
With this view,
Dobrindt is
now pretty much alone in his own party.
On Thursday, the Bavarian State Chancellery
Florian Hermann
(CSU)
spoke out in
favor of stronger
restrictions
.
Hermann
- in a sense Markus Söder's right hand - justified this with 4983 new infections within one day.
The numbers in
Bavaria are
high
too high.
He warned of an impending overload of the
health system
.
It is therefore advisable to limit contacts - even at
Christmas
.
"This virus follows neither the church year nor our personal plans," warned Hermann.
Hermann is
striking in the same direction as many other Union politicians in the past few days.
Vice-CDU Bundeschef and Baden-Württemberg Interior Minister
Thomas Strobl
warned that the previous measures had not had the necessary effect.
Strobl is therefore of the opinion that only a
hard lockdown
can calm the infection process.
“As sad and drastic as it is for the population: That is why we will hardly be able to avoid more decisive measures in hotspots and in the area.
It's about
human life
and it's about the
health of
many people, ”appeals Strobl.
RKI and Ciesek speak out against corona easing at Christmas
It can not go on like this.
Protect yourself and those around you!
Now!
The virus doesn't care about Christmas or our traditions.
And it won't give us any presents either.
https://t.co/S4kbxGUfNo
- Sandra Ciesek (@CiesekSandra) December 10, 2020
Sandra Ciesek
, Director of the Institute for Medical Virology at the University Hospital Frankfurt, took the new
highs
as an opportunity to make an emotional
appeal
to the population.
On Twitter she warned, “The virus is not interested in
Christmas
or our
traditions
.
And it won't give us any presents. "
The President of the
Robert Koch Institute also
speaks out against
easing
the corona measures over the
holidays
.
I think the important measure is to
really prevent
the easing over Christmas,
”said
Lothar Wieler
on Thursday.
He pointed out that such loosening would make the infection process
dynamic
that is
difficult to control
.
In the first federal states, such as Thuringia, the planned easing over the
Christmas holidays has
already been withdrawn.
Jewish community is already celebrating Hanukkah under Corona conditions
While appropriate
Corona measures
for Christmas are still being discussed, the Jewish community in Germany will be celebrating the eight-day
Hanukkah festival of
lights from Thursday under strict contact
restrictions
.
The celebrations will take place this year on the condition that no more than
five people from two households
are allowed to come together.
“It's a
restriction,
” says Josef Schuster, President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany.
In addition, it was a "certain unequal treatment," he said with a view to the political plans for
Christmas
.
In view of the high number of infections, however, it is absolutely the
right way to go
.
(phf) dpa
List of rubric lists: © Marijan Murat / dpa