Mon 04 May 2020:
Millions of Europeans emerged from lockdown on Monday, with hardest-hit Italy leading the way out of its two-month coronavirus confinement.
Lockdowns imposed on half of the planet in a bid to stem the spread have derailed economies and left tens of millions of people out of work.
Italy — second only to the United States in its COVID-19 death toll — was gingerly emerging into the spring sunshine on Monday, with construction sites and factories getting back to work.
Restaurants will reopen for takeaway service, but bars and ice cream parlours will remain shut. The use of public transport will be discouraged and everyone will have to wear masks in indoor public spaces.
Italy’s economy — the eurozone’s third-largest — is expected to shrink more than in any year since the global depression of the 1930s.
In the United States, the previously booming economy was supposed to be the centrepiece of Donald Trump’s November re-election bid.
But weeks of lockdown have left 30 million Americans out of work — and the president’s poll numbers sagging.
Russia’s cases rise
Russia is rapidly becoming Europe’s blackspot, with officials in Moscow urging residents to stay home in an effort to tamp down the daily tally of new cases.
“The threat is apparently on the rise,” Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin told citizens.
In parts of the continent further along the infection curve, governments were starting to get to grips with the new normal.
Most are advocating continued social distancing and masks in public, as well as more testing to try to track infections.
Face masks will be mandatory on public transport starting Monday in Spain, where people were allowed to go outdoors to exercise and walk freely on Saturday after a 48-day lockdown.
Germany will continue its easing on Monday, while Slovenia, Poland and Hungary will allow public spaces and businesses to partially reopen.
In another sign of life returning to normal, Germany’s minister for the interior and sport said Sunday he supports a resumption of the country’s football season this month — as long as teams respect hygiene conditions.
Think your friends would be interested? Share this story!
