In the face of a resurgence of Covid-19 infections, French authorities took all measures to ensure that France would be safe by 2021. An evening curfew across the country was imposed on New Year’s Eve by some 130,000 police; all public celebrations were banned and the government advised to limit private meetings to six people.
This did not stop some 2,500 revelers from participating in an illegal New Year’s rave near the city of Rennes in northwest France.
A statement from local authorities said that many of the revelers were still at the scene of the illegal party on Friday morning and that the police were unable to stop it. Paramedics were sent to the scene to distribute gel and masks in an attempt to limit the risk of contamination by coronavirus and prosecutors announced that they had opened an investigation into the illegal organization of the event.
The police tried to stop the rave “but faced the fierce hostility of many partygoers,” says the statement, adding that stones and bottles were thrown at them and that a police car was set on fire.
The rave near Rennes, and some other large-scale illegal parties across France that were dismantled by the police, raised concerns about the spread of the coronavirus, as the country still suffers from the second wave of the pandemic.
With more than 2.6 million confirmed cases of coronavirus – the largest number of cases in Europe – and about 65,000 deaths, France has paid a heavy tribute to the pandemic.
On Thursday, health officials announced that a first case of a new coronavirus variant linked to South Africa was reported in France, while the seven-day average of new cases of daily infections has exceeded 13,000 – more than double the government’s daily target of 5,000 new infections to ease restrictions.
To contain the increase in infections in parts of the country, French authorities announced on Friday that they would advance the night curfew by two hours in 15 of France’s 101 departments, or administrative divisions. The curfew will be at 6 pm instead of 8 pm, starting on Saturday.
With hospitals still struggling to cope with the second wave of the pandemic and while authorities fear that the holiday season will result in a recovery from Covid-19 infections, the French government is under pressure to act.
In a note sent to the government on December 23 and made public on Tuesday, France’s scientific council – the government’s advisory body for the Covid-19 crisis – recommended acting quickly in the face of a “possible” resumption of the pandemic that could soon it will be “out of control”.
The French government has ruled out a return to total blocking for now, despite pressure from some local officials, but Olivier Véran, France’s Minister of Health, warned that a relaxation of restrictions that forced bars, restaurants, museums and theaters to close is likely to be delayed.
“At this stage, and depending on developments in the coming days, it seems hardly conceivable to lift all restrictions,” said Véran.