Some find freedoms like France, Austria or Quebec but others sink a little deeper into the health crisis, like India or Argentina
France reopens its terraces and its museums, Austria its restaurants, New York falls the mask: the population of several Western countries finds a little freedom on Wednesday thanks to a decline in the epidemic, unlike the India still plunged into an acute health crisis.
After six months of slow-moving life, the French can once again eat or drink on the terrace from Wednesday, the latter being limited to 50% of their capacity and to six people per table. Restaurants and cafes will have to wait until June 9 to welcome dining room customers.
The return to normal life goes even further in Austria, where restaurants, hotels and places of culture reopen fully on Wednesday. However, it will be necessary to show a white paw at the entrance of the various places, by carrying out a test on site when possible or by presenting a negative result, proof of vaccination or antibodies.
No more masks in New York
After having been at the epicenter of the pandemic in the spring of 2020 and observed extreme caution in the face of the coronavirus for months, New York marks the lifting of many quantitative capacity restrictions still imposed on Wednesday, especially in restaurants.
The increase in the vaccination rate (more than 60% of New Yorkers have received at least one dose) and the fall in the Covid positivity rate, now below 1.5%, have also pushed several large banks such as JPMorgan Chase or Goldman Sachs sounded the end of widespread teleworking.
End of the crisis also in sight in Quebec, one of the Canadian provinces hardest hit by Covid-19: Prime Minister François Legault announced Tuesday a “summer of freedom” with a gradual lifting of restrictions by the end of June . The curfew will be lifted on May 28 and the wearing of a mask will no longer be compulsory for people vaccinated from June 25. “Today we see it, hope is there”, rejoiced during a press point François Legault.
Concerns in Argentina
This hope of Western countries, where vaccination is in full swing, contrasts with the still catastrophic situation in India, where immunization campaigns had to be stopped in several places due to the passage of Cyclone Tauktae, which made at least 33 dead and 93 missing.
Usually crowded, markets have been deserted in India
DIPTENDU DUTTA / AFP
India, which has 1.3 billion inhabitants, on Tuesday counted 4,329 deaths, a new record, and 263,533 cases in 24 hours, bringing the total toll to more than 25 million cases and 278,719 deaths. Everywhere, hospitals are saturated, nursing staff at the end of their rope, oxygen and medicines are lacking.
The situation is also worrying in Argentina, which on Tuesday recorded record numbers of new cases (35,543) and deaths (745) for a single day. The new coronavirus has killed at least 3.3 million people and infected more than 163 million people worldwide since the end of December 2019, according to a report established by AFP on Tuesday from official sources.
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