The mayor (PS) of Paris Anne Hidalgo on Tuesday asked to wear a mandatory mask in the streets of the capital and the reopening of parks and gardens, but Olivier Véran immediately reiterated his refusal to consider this derogation for these green spaces.
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"Taking into account the needs of Parisians, because Paris is a very dense city, I renew my request to open up the parks and gardens with a mandatory mask to the promenade, which should also be the case in all the streets of our city, "Anne Hidalgo wrote on Twitter.
Taking into account the needs of Parisians, because Paris is a very dense city, I renew my request to open up the parks and gardens with a mandatory mask to the promenade, which should also be the case in all the streets of our city .
- Anne Hidalgo (@Anne_Hidalgo) May 12, 2020Olivier Véran fears crowds in the parks
"No, we will not open the parks and gardens in Paris and Île-de-France as well as in the other regions which are classified red", replied the Minister of Health Olivier Véran during a trip to Limeil -Brevannes, in the Val-de-Marne.
"It can be extremely tempting with the sun that we have today that people gather too much, crowd too much, that they do not respect groups of ten and that they cannot respect the conditions of barrier gestures ", he explained, adding" having seen the images "of Parisians gathered" "on the banks of the Seine" Monday evening.
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The Bois de Vincennes and the Bois de Boulogne have been fully open since the start of deconfinement on Monday, but the parks and gardens of Paris remain closed for the time being. The classification of the capital in epidemic red zone "imposes the maintenance of the closing of parks and gardens until further notice", had explained Friday the town hall in a press release.
Monday evening, dozens of people along the Saint-Martin canal
But the first day of deconfinement showed the immediate desire of Parisians to enjoy their city again. Dozens of people gathered on Monday evening, along the banks of the Saint-Martin canal, a popular place for Parisians, to enjoy the first evening of deconfinement, ignoring social distancing, before being dislodged by the forces of order.
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The consumption of alcohol will be prohibited "on the banks of the Canal Saint-Martin and on the entire length of the waterways on the banks in the capital from May 12," announced the prefect of police Didier Lallement in a statement.
"Given the level of vivacity of the virus" in the region, Anne Hidalgo had already expressed Sunday in the JDD the wish that "the wearing of the mask is mandatory in the streets of Paris or in shops". Since the beginning of the deconfinement, wearing a mask is now compulsory in public transport, but not in the whole of public space even if it is recommended.