The Czech government is trying to slow the second wave of the coronavirus epidemic with a series of stringent measures, including restaurants and schools’ closure after the country has reached the brink of a second national quarantine. Reuters, AP, AFP, and DPA reported the new restrictions agreed by the cabinet on Monday. The Guardian newspaper and the Politico server then pointed out that while the Czech government reacted quickly and vigorously to the pandemic in the spring, rising statistics did not force it to take decisive steps in the summer.
“The Czech Republic has earned praise for initially managing the situation at the outbreak in the spring. It was the first European country to order the wearing of veils in public and was the first to start releasing when the virus subsided. But when the numbers infected in August began growing again, the government reacted slowly and only hesitantly accepted the restrictions only when the balance of those infected exceeded one thousand, “wrote the Politico server.
“The Czech Republic may be on its way to a second national quarantine after a dramatic increase in covid-19 cases, with the epidemic growing the fastest in Europe, just months after being cited as a success story in the fight against the disease,” The Guardian writes. The British daily also warns that the Czechia lifted almost all restrictions adopted earlier due to coronavirus spread at the end of June. Still, when statistics began to deteriorate in August, it did not reintroduce them.
“(Prime Minister) Babis, who initially rejected proposals to reintroduce the veils before changing course again, tried to partially blame the allegedly uncooperative public, which he said was no longer so willing to follow the rules,” The Guardian added.
Agencies and other media then point out the worrying numbers. The Czechia is now the worst affected country in Europe in terms of the rate of coronavirus spread. While at the beginning of September, the Czech Republic registered around 25,000 infected people, now it is almost 120,000, the Reuters agency reported. Last week, a record of 8,600 people tested positive in a single day in the Czech Republic, which, when calculated per capita, is as if the US reports over a quarter of a million people infected daily.