Berlin (AFP)
Germany rediscovered its football on Saturday, France its beaches: the lifting of restrictions continues in a world paralyzed by the coronavirus, which has killed more than 307,000 and is causing an unprecedented recession.
The Bundesliga was to become the first major football league to return to the stadiums on Saturday after weeks of confinement. The stake is of importance for the other big nations of the round ball which will follow with attention this return on the grounds, behind closed doors.
"The whole world is now looking to us," said Bayern Munich coach Hansi Flick, hoping that success would be "a signal for all other leagues".
Four second division meetings set the tone at the start of the afternoon: no handshakes, no children to accompany the players, no cheers.
The leading tourist destination in Europe, France reopened several emblematic sites on Saturday, such as Mont Saint-Michel, Chartres Cathedral and the Sanctuary of Lourdes.
However, their access is reserved for local visitors: in this country where the pandemic has killed more than 27,500 people, travel remains limited to a radius of 100km around the home.
- Reopened borders -
For their first unconfined weekend, thousands of Parisians took to the road to go and breathe in the forests bordering the Ile de France, after two months confined to their homes. "I really missed nature," says Lise Balmes, a 55-year-old hospital doctor.
Many French beaches have been authorized to reopen. But no question of sunbathing or picnicking: they are reserved for a "dynamic" use, without collective activities.
Greece, for its part, has reopened its private beaches, but also on the condition of respecting strict rules, including the ban on placing its parasol less than four meters from its neighbor. Public beaches reopened on May 4.
Third most bereaved country in the world (more than 31,600 dead) and also very dependent on tourism, Italy also hopes for a return of summer visitors.
St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican is due to reopen on Monday, and Rome announced on Saturday that it will reopen its borders from June 3 for EU tourists, with no quarantine period.
- "We are still afraid" -
Under strong pressure to do the same, Germany does not envisage such a measure before June 15. However, it reopened its border with Luxembourg on Saturday and slightly eased the conditions for crossing with Austria and Switzerland.
At the German-Swiss border in Konstanz, the partial reopening was celebrated by several hundred people, including elected officials who clinked glasses in front of the cameras.
In Africa, the inhabitants of Abidjan were able to find their famous "maquis", these popular restaurant bars. But in a halftone atmosphere. "We are still afraid of the disease," explains Hymia Solange Ouattara, who came to have fun Friday night at Chez Gnawa, in a lively district of the Ivorian capital.
The virus, which according to the World Health Organization (WHO) could "never disappear", continues its deadly course. And in several countries, the time is not for celebration.
In Chile, the capital Santiago woke up on Saturday in total containment, a measure ordered by the government after a jump in contamination and a doubling of the number of daily deaths in two days.
- Shared beds -
In India, the pandemic is overwhelming the health system in Bombay, the country's economic lung: bodies are lying around in hospital rooms and some patients have to share their beds. "The system is under enormous pressure, it is exploding," said Deepak Baid, a doctor.
The economic impact of the pandemic is colossal. According to the World Trade Organization (WTO), world trade is expected to experience "double-digit declines" in volume in almost all regions of the world.
The effect is particularly devastating in the air sector. Air Canada in turn announced Friday evening the layoff of more than half of its 38,000 employees.
In the United States, the most affected country with more than 87,500 deaths, unemployment affects nearly 15% of the working population, a record.
The House of Representatives voted on Friday for a historic $ 3 trillion aid plan to fight the economic ravages of the epidemic. But President Donald Trump declared this text presented by the Democrats "stillborn".
- "Multilateral response" -
He also predicted again Friday the arrival of a vaccine before the end of the year, "maybe before".
An optimism showered by the French Minister for Research, Frédérique Vidal. We can "hope for a vaccine within 18 months, but it is not reasonable to think that we can go faster than that, except endangering the safety of people," she said. Saturday.
The European Medicines Agency had mentioned a delay of one year on Thursday, according to an "optimistic" scenario.
Over a hundred projects have been launched around the world and a dozen clinical trials are underway, including five in China, to try to find a cure for Covid-19.
The 194 member states of the World Health Organization (WHO) must meet remotely Monday to try to coordinate their response to the pandemic, an appointment however under the threat of a direct confrontation between Washington and Beijing.
In a column published Friday, the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, called on Beijing and the EU to strengthen "trust, transparency and reciprocity". "We clearly need a multilateral response in all dimensions of the crisis," he insisted.
burx-phs / sg
© 2020 AFP