Australia cheers end of Melbourne lockdown
MELBOURNE: Champagne corks popped in Australia’s second-biggest city as a months-long coronavirus lockdown ended, contrasting with deepening gloom in Europe where France and Germany were set to reintroduce curbs.
The pandemic has unleashed vast devastation across the global economy and in the absence of a vaccine or effective treatment, countries are being forced to impose widely unpopular Covid-19 restrictions that have sparked violent clashes in Italy.
Much of the United States – the worst-hit nation in the world – is also bracing for a tough winter, but there was exhilaration and relief in Melbourne as its five million people were able to return to shops and restaurants yesterday after months at home.
“We’ve really been awaiting this day for very long,” said department store manager Magda Combrinck. “It’s a big day for us.” Australia’s control of its outbreak stood in stark contrast to the surging virus in Europe, with Germany regularly reporting 10,000 new infections every day, daily cases in France topping 50,000, and hospitals in Belgium nearing capacity.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel is expected to push for lockdown measures in crisis talks with the country’s regional leaders.
The proposed new restrictions include closing restaurants and bars and putting strict limits on private and public gatherings while keeping schools, daycares and shops open, according to the Bild.
Media reports in France, meanwhile, said President Emmanuel Macron may extend the hours of an existing curfew, with possibly a full lockdown on weekends, or order targeted lockdowns in the hardesthit regions.
And in Russia, an order making masks mandatory at public gatherings, on public transport and in elevators is set to come into force, state news agency TASS reported.
The new restrictions are likely to test the resolve and patience of many.
Anger has already boiled over in Italy, where thousands have protested in recent days against anticoronavirus curbs.