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In the Netherlands there should be no fireworks on New Year’s Eve this year due to the corona pandemic. A possible ban on firecrackers and missiles is also being discussed in Germany.
The persistently high number of corona infections has sparked a debate about banning fireworks on New Year’s Eve. The chairman of the German Police Union (DPolG), Rainer Wendt, told the newspaper “Bild”: “The New Year’s Eve fireworks must be canceled this year due to the crown.”
Alcohol, crowds, and a party atmosphere quickly joined the fireworks, and that’s not in, so Wendt. CSU member of the Bundestag Michael Kuffer opined in the newspaper that “alcohol and New Year’s Eve fireworks” should be banned.
Control “hardly feasible in terms of personnel”
Above all, that would pose almost impossible tasks for the police. “It should also be possible to control and enforce the bans. From the point of view of the police union, this is hardly feasible in terms of personnel,” said Deputy Head of the Police Union (GdP), Jörg Radek, and therefore agreed a different tone from the DPolG Unionist.
Federal Interior Minister Horst Seehofer (CSU) rejects a ban, according to “Bild”. The parliamentary secretary of state of the Federal Ministry of the Interior, Stephan Mayer (CSU), said in the br, you would have to respect the rules of distance and wear masks, but “a categorical ban on New Year’s Eve fireworks is not necessary from the point of view of the Federal Ministry of the Interior.” New Year’s Eve will be different this year than usual, however, politicians will do their best so that citizens can properly but happily celebrate New Years Eve, Mayer said.
The Länder refer to the municipalities
At the national level, there are different views on the debate. Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann (CSU) referred to the temporary ban on the celebrations. “Since you are not currently allowed to get together to celebrate anyway, it doesn’t matter if someone comes out with New Year’s Eve cookies or three bottles of champagne,” said the CSU politician. His NRW Interior Minister Herbert Reul (CDU) spoke out against the firecrackers and rockets. “The Halloween weekend was very quiet in the bastions of our party,” said Reul of the newspaper “Bild”. “I wish it would be the same again on New Year’s Eve.”
Baden-Württemberg Prime Minister Winfried Kretschmann (Greens), on the other hand, warned: “You must not use the pandemic as an excuse to ban all the things that have always upset you.” The deciding factor is whether fireworks contribute to the pandemic. “I don’t see that at first,” Kretschmann said. The respective municipalities have the last word.
The interior minister of Schleswig-Holstein, Sabine Sütterlin-Waack, also referred to this in relation to the news agency dpa: “I am convinced that our cities and municipalities, as every year, are in charge of issuing a ban on firecrackers where needed. “
Skepticism and warnings about the ban
The German Association of Cities considers the general ban on firecrackers to be wrong. “In cities, the handling of private New Year’s Eve fireworks is debated differently in the context of the corona pandemic,” CEO Helmut Dedy told the Germany publishing network. The local and regional infection process is different, as are local and urban conditions. “In this context, the German Association of Cities makes no recommendation to ban New Year’s fireworks.”
Dedy also noted that some cities have long banned the firing of fireworks and rockets in certain parts of the city center, to ensure the safety of the celebrators. “Because in various urban centers there have been incidents on New Year’s Eve in recent years where people have been in danger from fireworks.”
Meanwhile, the Pyrotechnic Industry Association strongly warned against banning New Year’s Eve fireworks. “That would probably spell bankruptcy for the industry, and fireworks would cease to exist once and for all in Germany,” said association director Thomas Schreiber at the rbb. It is also to be hoped that if legal firecrackers are banned, more illegal fireworks will be set off.
Ban on fireworks in the Netherlands
Earlier in the week, Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH) had already called for a New Year’s Eve fireworks ban and warned that private fireworks could further overwhelm hospitals in the crown crisis. “Thousands of people are injured by firecrackers each year, including many young people,” said DUH Federal Director General Jürgen Resch. Therefore, the federal government should follow the example of the Netherlands and “completely ban the sale and use of New Year’s Eve fireworks.”
The Dutch government had decided to ban fireworks on New Year’s Eve last Friday due to the corona pandemic. This is to prevent doctors and nurses from having to care for people injured by fireworks, the government said.
