The Netherlands eases restrictions despite morbidity: "Take a risk"
The prime minister has announced that cafes, restaurants and bars that have been closed since the middle of last month will be allowed to reopen by 10pm, amid public outrage over the tight closure.
This is despite a jump in the number of daily cases.
The health minister warned that this was "not the flu" but noted that prolonged restrictions "harm health and society"
News agencies
26/01/2022
Wednesday, 26 January, 2022, 11:13 Updated: 11:24
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The Dutch government has announced that it will ease from today (Wednesday) the corona restrictions, which were among the strictest in Europe.
Bars, restaurants and museums closed on December 18 in an attempt to stem the spread of the Omicron strain, but the daily number of infected people continued to grow, reaching 60,000 a day.
Prime Minister Mark Rutte said at a press conference that the state is "taking a risk" in easing the restrictions.
Rota, who in recent weeks has called for easing restrictions in light of declining mortality and intensive care hospitalizations, added that the new regulations will be valid until March 8.
From today, cafes, bars and restaurants will be allowed to operate until 22:00, although customers will be required to present documents confirming that they have been vaccinated against the virus or have recently recovered from it.
The nightclubs will remain closed, and the number of spectators at sporting and cultural events will be limited to 1,250 people.
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To the full article
Support for restrictions has waned recently.
Demonstration in Amsterdam against restrictions last week (Photo: Reuters)
The partial opening of restaurants and cafes came after the outrage of industry workers, who saw how other sectors of the economy opened as early as January 15th.
Several cafes in the country operated despite restrictions, and dozens of museums and theaters opened as beauty salons for one day in protest of government policies.
In addition, public support for the rigid restrictions has waned in the past month while large demonstrations in the capital Amsterdam have become more frequent.
Ruta hinted at this in his remarks, telling reporters that the government is examining the borders, "due to the much tension and calls for help in recent days."
At the same time, Health Minister Ernest Kuipers warned that the corona was "not the flu," but said easing restrictions was important.
"Living with restrictions over time is detrimental to our health and society," he said.
About 90% of the Dutch are vaccinated, but the country is significantly behind in the booster vaccination campaign relative to its neighbors in Western Europe.
Only 57% of the vaccinated received the third dose of the vaccine.
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