Police across Europe and the UK have struggled to enforce distancing
guidelines as thousands protest against lockdown enforcement.
A man is arrested at a 'UK freedom movement' mass gathering in London
Photo: AFP
Heavy police presence at anti-lockdown protests
Police in London arrested 19 people for deliberately breaking social
distancing guidelines in protest against the rules, on the first weekend
since Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a slight loosening of
England's lockdown.
The Metropolitan Police said that a group in central London's Hyde
Park had been protesting about the government's response to the Covid-19
pandemic and had failed to comply with repeated requests to disperse.
"It was disappointing that a relatively small group in Hyde Park came
together to protest the regulations in clear breach of the guidance,
putting themselves and others at risk of infection," Laurence Taylor,
Deputy Assistant Commissioner at the Metropolitan Police, said in a
statement.
Police officers were seen taking away protesters, including the
brother of Britain's former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, Piers Corbyn.
Poland
In Poland, police used tear gas against protesters demanding the government act faster to allow businesses to reopen.
Hundreds of protesters gathered in Warsaw's Old Town in the early
afternoon, carrying signs saying, "Work and bread" and "It will be
normal again."
People wear protective face
masks as they take part in a protest against the Coronavirus economic
package at the Castle Square in Warsaw, Poland
Photo: AFP
Poland has been steadily loosening coronavirus restrictions in recent
weeks in an effort to cushion the economy. Hair salons and restaurants
are expected to reopen with new safety measures in place on Monday.
But the protesters, who have gathered repeatedly in recent weeks, say
restrictions need to be lifted further in order for them to sustain
their livelihoods.
Police blocked the planned march, saying in a statement published on
Twitter that public gatherings are still banned under the government
restrictions.
"Unfortunately we are dealing with cases of aggression towards
police. Due to the attacks on civil servants, we used methods of direct
confrontation such as physical force and [tear] gas," the Warsaw police
said in a tweet.
Germany
Germany's death toll from the virus has been lower than most of its
European neighbours and some lockdown measures have already been
relaxed, but still thousands of protesters gathered across the country
for the second weekend in a row.
Derided on social media as "covidiots" who risk causing a second wave
of infections that could lead to a tightening of restrictions,
protesters staged demonstrations against restrictions battering the
economy and a perceived loss of civic freedom at several locations
across the capital Berlin and the surrounding state of Brandenburg.
In some places, people also voiced conspiracy theories and anti-vaccination views.
Spain extends state of emergency one last time
Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has announced his government
will seek to extend its coronavirus state of emergency for the last time
until late June.
"The path that we are taking is the only one possible," Sanchez said,
adding that the end of June should be when most of the hard-hit nation
can begin returning to normality.
"It should be the last state of emergency [period] and will continue
until the end of the rollback. For that reason, instead of being a
15-day [extension] it will be for about a month."
Spain first introduced a state of emergency decree on 14 March.
Officials say that while the outbreak has been brought largely under
control, restrictions must stay in place a bit longer as the lockdown is
gradually phased out.
The country's Covid-19 death toll rose by 102 to 27,563 overnight,
the lowest 24-hour increase since 18 March. Confirmed coronavirus cases
climbed by roughly 500 to 230,698 total.
After pushing four previous extensions through parliament, support
for Sanchez's left-wing coalition is waning among lawmakers and voters.
Some small protests against the government's handling of the
coronavirus crisis and its economic fallout sprang up around Madrid this
week, with demonstrators gathering to bang pots and pans and calling
for the prime minister to resign.
"It doesn't matter what the demonstrations are about. The important thing is to maintain social distancing," Sanchez said.
- ABC
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