Thousands of protesters marched through Vienna on Saturday after the Austrian government announced a nationwide lockdown beginning Monday to contain skyrocketing coronavirus infections.
Demonstrations against virus restrictions also took place in Switzerland, Croatia, Italy, Northern Ireland, and the Netherlands on Saturday, a day after Dutch police opened fire on protesters and seven people were injured in rioting that erupted in Rotterdam. Protesters rallied against coronavirus restrictions and mandatory COVID-19 passes needed in many European countries to enter restaurants, Christmas markets or sports events, as well as mandatory vaccinations.
The Austrian lockdown will start Monday and comes as average daily deaths have tripled in recent weeks and hospitals in heavily hit states have warned that intensive care units are reaching capacity. The lockdown will last at least 10 days but could go up to 20, officials said. People will be able to leave their homes only for specific reasons, including buying groceries, going to the doctor, or exercising.
The government also will make vaccinations mandatory starting Feb. 1. Not quite 66% of Austria’s 8.9 million people are fully vaccinated, one of the lowest rates in Western Europe.
In neighboring Switzerland, 2,000 people protested an upcoming referendum on whether to approve the government’s COVID-19 restrictions law, claiming it was discriminatory, public broadcaster SRF reported.
A day after the Rotterdam rioting, thousands gathered on Amsterdam’s central Dam Square, despite organizers calling off the protest. They walked peacefully through the streets, closely monitored by police.
Police fire warning shots, injuring an unknown number of people, as riots break out in downtown #Rotterdam at a demonstration against plans by the government to restrict access for unvaccinated people to some venues.
COVID19https://t.co/d3F7Ylz7pl pic.twitter.com/FmkJ8cetG7
— Al Arabiya English (@AlArabiya_Eng) November 20, 2021
#Holland #TheHague as #Rotterdam (52 arrests) in the city the protests have resulted in the greatest violence pic.twitter.com/7249WH0H0H
— Donato Yaakov Secchi (@doyaksec) November 21, 2021
In Italy, 3,000 turned out in the capital’s Circus Maximus, a field where in ancient times Romans staged popular entertainment, to protest against “Green Pass” certificates required at workplaces, restaurants, cinemas, theaters, sports venues, and gyms, as well as for long-distance train, bus or ferry travel.
NEW 🚨 Thousands gather in Rome, Italy in protest against country’s health pass pic.twitter.com/hqGjnGRYZb
— Insider Paper (@TheInsiderPaper) November 20, 2021
In Northern Ireland, several hundred people opposed to vaccine passports protested outside the city hall in Belfast, where the city’s Christmas market opened Saturday — a market where proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test was required.
The Northern Ireland government voted this week to introduce vaccine certificates for admission to nightclubs, bars, and restaurants starting Dec. 13.
Some protesters carried signs that have been widely criticized as offensive, comparing coronavirus restrictions to the actions of Nazi Germany.
In Croatia, thousands gathered in the capital of Zagreb, carrying flags, nationalist and religious symbols, along with banners against vaccination and what they describe as restrictions of people’s freedoms.
source ap
