"Stay in your room, I mean it." In Flanders it became the verdict of the corona crisis. In March, then Minister of Health Maggie De Block (Open VLD) called on everyone who was ill to absolutely stay at home. For many people who are low literate, the language and especially the seriousness of the matter was clear. To the left and, above all, to the right, the question is now how long the state can still impose the curfew. Exceptional circumstances can justify exceptional measures, but the problem is that it is difficult to get rid of them. Meanwhile, the European Commission has been strongly criticized for its hesitancy and strategic mistakes in the procurement of vaccines.
A year later, freedom is in sight, but we are far from there. Minister of Health Frank Vandenbroucke (SP.A), who took office in January, said that 'the realm of freedom is in sight', but for many freedom is a flexible concept. In this phase, therefore, caution is the code word. According to the most recent figures, a total of 1.905 people are now in hospital, 474 of whom are in need of intensive care. This is evident from the preliminary figures from the health institute today sciensano. Between 4 and 10 March, an average of 2.613 new infections were diagnosed daily, an increase of 11 percent compared to the previous week.
We are longing for a holiday, but we do not yet book en masse in Corona time. Exotic travel providers are facing another difficult year. The travel industry was hit hard by the corona crisis last year and the blows are getting harder now that all outstanding vouchers have to be redeemed. The number of daily new infections with the corona virus in Belgium remains high. In the Netherlands, 24 new corona cases were also reported to the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) in the past 6.446 hours. That is almost 400 more than yesterday. All figures indicate that the third wave has started. The number of deaths continues to fall in the Netherlands, but the daily influx into hospitals is rising slightly, says the LCPS.
law-abiding
The contamination figures today also show something completely different. In China, and by extension Asia, the situation is much better under control than in Western countries. Asian governments and virology experts immediately took the coronavirus seriously and informed citizens about it. In addition, Asians are much more dutiful and above all law-abiding than the people here. Children in Asia are in awe of their parents and are usually afraid to argue. Wearing a mouth mask is very normal. Not only against smog, but also in the fight against bird flu and sars.
Here a man, who intervenes during a fight about the mouth mask, is taken to hospital. Two young guys were arrested on Friday after a case of senseless violence in Zandvliet. In Groningen, an officer was stabbed in the head and neck several times on Wednesday evening in Groningen. Officers wanted to check on two young men about curfew. After addressing the pair, the officers were almost immediately attacked.
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