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ROME: Italy was spending its last day in a total blockade on Sunday (May 3), but the partial relaxation of stringent coronavirus measures after a two-month shutdown was causing anxiety and confusion rather than euphoria.
Across the country, attempts to make plans for the first day of freedom were hampered by uncertainty about the rules. The government has a list of permitted activities, but the regions are also developing their own regulations.
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“I hope this morning’s newspaper makes it clear. I want to take my mother to the beach, can I?” asked 53-year-old cleaner Pietro Garlanti while patiently queuing in the sun at a kiosk in the historic center of the capital.
In this first stage, the 60 million inhabitants of Italy will be able to move more freely within their own regions, visit family members, go to the reopened parks with their children and go by bicycle or run further from home.
The Vittorio Emanuele II Gallery, home to several luxury boutiques, remains deserted as a result of the closure. (Photo: AP Photo / Luca Bruno)
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However, none of that can be done in groups, so large family lunches are prohibited. Going to vacation homes is not allowed. And people cannot leave their own regions, except for emergencies or for health reasons.
The 20 regions of Italy, however, have taken their own spin on the rules. Two of them, Veneto and Calabria, even lifted their locks early, opening bars and restaurants with outdoor tables this week.
Liguria is thinking of letting people sail in small groups, and is reopening its beaches. So is the Marghe region, but to stroll without sunbathing. Emilia-Romagna keeps them closed, even for those who live by the sea.
A closed bar in Venice, as large parts of northern Italy are enclosed to prevent the spread of the virus. (Photo: AFP / Andrea Pattaro)
“We’ve been looking forward to May 4, but now it’s finally here, it’s a disappointment. Until they tell me I’m really free, I’ll feel paranoid, like I’m breaking the rules somehow.” 37 years ago, Michele Magna told AFP.
“EXTREMELY WORRIED”
Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte further puzzled many by saying that Italian visits with “congiunti” were allowed.
The Italian word can mean relatives or relatives. Then he tried to clarify by saying that it was extended to people who had “relationships of constant affection.” Many asked if that meant lovers, friends, and boyfriends were included.
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The government was forced on Saturday to post a question-and-answer session specifying that people could see extended relatives, including, for example, the children of their cousins, but friends, much loved as they were, were out of the question. limits.
People walk through a deserted Piazza Navona in central Rome, as Italy closed all stores except pharmacies and food stores in a desperate attempt to stop the spread of a coronavirus. (Photo: AFP / Vincenzo Pinto)
Professor Alessandra Coletti thought the confusion would be used “as an excuse by many for a kind of freedom for all.”
The government hopes to ease the blockade of the coronavirus, the longest in the world, will restart a paralyzed economy.
But Conte warned that he will be watching closely to see if the virus reappears, and is ready to enforce localized blocks if necessary to stop the return of a pandemic that has claimed nearly 29,000 lives.
“I am extremely concerned about the reopening, I do not trust people to act responsibly,” said vendor Tiziano Mazzoli.
Father Duilio Diligente, 38, said he was concerned about how children like his eight-year-old son would readjust.
“Last night we were out on our bikes in an empty plaza, when she suddenly went wide to avoid a man and his dog, and he fell. He said he was afraid to approach them in case they had the virus,” he said. .
“It will take time for us to be really psychologically prepared for the end of the bull run.”
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