The quays of the Seine, in the 4th arrondissement of Paris, March 21, 2021. -

L.Cometti / 20 Minutes

  • Presented on Thursday, the new rules to curb the coronavirus epidemic entered into force on Saturday, for a third of French people in 16 departments, including Paris.

  • In the capital, many residents did not understand these restrictions, combining a maintenance of the curfew (shifted from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.), the closure of certain businesses, and the return of the certificate to leave home .

  • The back-pedaling of the executive on the certificate in the event of a walk did not help a good understanding of these rules, testify walkers interviewed this Sunday on the banks of the Seine by

    20 Minutes

    .

On foot, on a scooter or by bike, with friends or family, a coffee in hand or sitting with a book ... Following the entry into force of new rules dictated by the fight against Covid-19, Parisians are many this Sunday on the banks of the Seine to stretch their legs and enjoy some rays of sun.

For their first exit in this new regime of health restrictions, which concerns 16 departments, including those of Ile-de-France, many have not quite understood the government's announcements.

Certification or not?

Some, like Michel and Martine, have completed a certificate for their Sunday walk, via the government application Tous Anti Covid.

"We discovered that we were entitled to only one hour of output by opening the app earlier," wondered this couple of young retirees.

Sign that the official application has not yet been updated, after the backpedal of the executive.

The certificate initially planned was deleted on Saturday, shortly after its publication, to simplify the procedures.

From now on, proof of address is sufficient to walk during the day, without time limit, within a radius of 10 kilometers around your home.

But it is far from clear to all.

“There is a problem with the government's communication.

It's confusing, and inconsistent, "plague Michel, who does not understand why high schools are imposed a gauge, but not colleges or schools, and who deplores the return of the certificate to go shopping.

"It's painful, this administrative constraint for nothing".

"It doesn't really make sense"

A little further on, two friends are walking along the quays, towards the east, bicycle helmets under their arms.

"Thursday evening, all my colleagues asked me 'but what did they mean?'

», Laughs Manon, 31, in charge of internal communication, about the press conference of the Prime Minister.

The two thirties managed to untangle the thread of government announcements and therefore left their homes without certificate this Sunday.

They may have understood these new rules, but their usefulness seems unlikely to them.

"It's not consistent, we expected real restrictions, finally we gain an hour of curfew, and the shops are closed, but that will not change anything in the evolution of the virus," said Marine, 29 years, business development director in the media.

"It does not really make sense, while the borders have remained open for a very long time, and the vaccination is delayed, it's mind-boggling", continues Manon.

"We would have preferred to be confined for a while, to get out of that", they smile, in need of "party", before resuming their walk which will end with "a beer in the sun".

Weariness and resignation

For Grégoire, the new government announcements “will not change anything” in his daily life, nor that of his son Ferdinand, 9, who will continue to go to school - “unfortunately”, he blows.

“The ten kilometers are to prevent us from leaving Paris,” sums up this 50-year-old illustrator.

As for the other measures, I think they are ineffective, such as the curfew [implemented since December].

But people are no longer ready to accept confinement ”.

Like him, many Parisians crossed by

20 Minutes

express their lack of interest in these new everyday rules.

Weariness, a year after the first confinement, and lack of confidence in the effectiveness of these restrictions, add to their indifference to the practical details of this new turn of the screw.

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  • Society

  • Paris

  • Covid 19

  • Confinement

  • Coronavirus