Children who turn twelve this winter are falling into a kind of lockdown.
They do not get a vaccination appointment before their birthday - after that it takes until they are allowed to go anywhere again.
Weilheim - Markus Kugler (name changed) doesn't yet know how he will teach his son to do it.
So far, he and his wife have not brought up the subject - but they think about it all the time.
Because for a few days it has been clear that her youngest son will get into a kind of lockdown through no fault of his own.
It will start on his 12th birthday, Christmas Day.
Father complains: When son turns 12, he is excluded from public life
Until then, the 2G restrictions do not apply to him - because as an eleven-year-old he cannot yet be vaccinated.
“He doesn't even get an appointment after his birthday,” reports his father.
However, after his 12th birthday, his son is excluded from sports training, theater or music groups.
The planned ski weekends, for which the family from Weilheim had already bought ski passes, will probably fall through.
Even going to the cinema or going to the swimming pool would initially only be possible for three of the Kuglers - without the youngest member of the family.
Son turns 12 - and because of 2G, he can no longer do BMX training
The state government had improved this rule and set a transition period for twelve-year-olds by the end of the year, during which the 2G rules did not yet apply to them. But since Kugler's son will only be twelve six days before the end of the year, that doesn't help him much. "We do not assume that he will get a vaccination appointment between the holidays," says the father. Even at the beginning of January, he does not have much hope because of the booster vaccinations. In the worst case, his son could no longer pursue his hobbies until spring. “He rides BMX,” says the man from Weilheim. "Without a vaccination, he is no longer allowed to go to indoor training." To make matters worse, many of his friends had been infected with Corona in the past few weeks and are now considered to have recovered. Markus Kugler expects a lot of frustration,when his son learns how his new year is about to begin.
The children went through so much in the pandemic - now they are excluded from social life through no fault of their own.
Father Markus Kugler
And he and his wife are also very frustrated.
“The solution would have been so simple,” he says.
If the 2G rules only applied to twelve and a half year olds, everyone would have enough time to get vaccinated, he emphasizes.
"The children went through so much in the pandemic - now they are excluded from social life through no fault of their own."
Family initiative: "It's a shame for this country" - again, children are the ones to suffer
The Bavarian Family Initiative draws attention to this problem, which affects all families whose children will turn twelve at the end of this or the beginning of next year.
For all eleven-year-olds, the birthday goes into a lockdown of at least six weeks, emphasizes spokeswoman Sabine Kohwagner.
"It is a shame for this country and this policy that children and young people are denied participation in social life because too many adults still do not want to be vaccinated." Adolescents with tests should have access to all areas of life.
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There is also criticism from the opposition. This group was simply forgotten, says Dominik Spitzer, health policy spokesman for the FDP. He also advocates setting a buffer for twelve-year-olds until the 2G rule applies. He could imagine three months. Katharina Schulze, the leader of the Greens in the state parliament, demands that 3G should generally apply to children and young people in Bavaria - as in most other federal states. “In addition, PCR pool tests are finally needed in all schools for even more security, then children and young people will have 3Gplus protection for leisure activities,” she says. In addition, she calls for an awareness campaign for vaccination from the age of twelve - including the possibility of having children vaccinated in schools.The psychological stress on children and adolescents has increased significantly, she emphasizes. "The families are at the limit and above."
2G: Father hopes for an exception in sports and leisure for children
At least in one point, the state government improved the regulation yesterday: For underage students up to the age of 17 who are regularly tested in school, there is now an exception to the 2G rule in Bavaria in restaurants, hotels and holiday apartments .
Markus Kugler hopes that the club and leisure area will soon be improved - for all children who have the same problem as his son.
He has already taken action for this.
He wrote a letter to the state government to draw attention to the problem.
He knows from his circle of friends that it worries many parents.
He is still waiting for an answer - and is already thinking about how to teach his son that it could be a bleak winter.