VIENNA — Daniel Zeman wasn’t able to sell any of his handmade apple-ginger liqueur last year during the Christmas season because Austria, along with the rest of Europe, was in lockdown. He finally opened his stand four days ago, only to have the government announce that Sunday would be the last day. Austria was locking down.
At a time when vaccinated people were looking forward to a return to traditional holiday rituals, the decision was a blow that angered some and frustrated nearly everyone.
“If we have to close down in January, I understand that,” Mr. Zeman said. “But now it is Christmastime and everyone wants to be together, to drink punch, buy gifts and do things with their families.”
Europe is experiencing a menacing fourth wave of the coronavirus, with soaring rates of infection. While Austria may be the first European country to respond with a nationwide lockdown, it may not be the last. That prospect, along with increasingly stringent vaccine mandates, is setting off a backlash here and elsewhere, with mass demonstrations in Vienna, Brussels and the Dutch city of Rotterdam over the weekend, sometimes punctuated with violent outbreaks.
Source Article from https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/21/world/europe/austria-covid-lockdown-vaccine-mandates.html
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