In view of the rapidly increasing numbers of infections and patients, the Netherlands are imposing an evening lockdown. Shops, cultural sites, restaurants and sports clubs have to close at 5 p.m. every day.
The tightened measures apply from Sunday for an initial three weeks; this was announced by Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Friday in The Hague. “In the Netherlands, everything will be closed from 5 p.m. onwards.” Supermarkets are excluded.
Schools should remain open for the time being. However, students aged ten and over must wear a face mask when they are not in their place. The 1.5 meter distance rule is being extended to cinemas, theaters and restaurants. This means that they can receive fewer visitors. The mask requirement will apply there again. There really has to be a turning point, said Rutte.
The situation at the hospitals in particular is worsening. Health Minister Hugo de Jonge imposed emergency measures so that acute treatments can now also be canceled. In a hospital in Utrecht, 120 military personnel are now being deployed to relieve nursing staff. The state of emergency must be prevented, said de Jonge.
Throughout the country, emergency services had prepared for possible unrest due to the tightened measures. Some people had already been arrested on Friday as a precaution for calling for riots on social networks. Last weekend there had been violent riots all night long. The police are expecting protests over the weekend.
The government was heavily criticized for its early easing in September. The number of infections rose rapidly. On November 13, the government pulled the emergency brake and imposed a partial lockdown. But above all the situation in the hospitals worsened.
Most recently, around 21,350 new corona cases were registered on Friday, which is around 900 fewer than the day before. But the testing capacity of the authorities has long been exhausted. On average, 19 percent more new infections had been reported in the past seven days.