The Italian government wants to avoid a complete lockdown like in the spring. Instead, the country is now divided into different risk zones. Some regions are resisting the classification, while in the south there are calls for more restrictions. In Italy, the stricter corona regulations are causing violent protests, although the partial lockdown is less strict than in spring. Regional politicians from north to south again demanded changes from the center-left government in dividing the Mediterranean country into three new risk zones. In many cities, taxi drivers went on strike lasting several hours to protest against, among other things, the nocturnal curfew across the country. They have suffered major losses due to the slump in tourism since the first Corona wave in spring. Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte defended the tightening, which has been in force since Friday.
Lockdown costs Conte sympathies Rights march in riots in Rome
Rome issued new anti-corona rules several times in October. Among them were the mask requirement and the closing of the bars after 6 p.m. “But the virus is a train that rolls,” he said at a Corriere della Sera event. On Friday, the health authorities reported a record number of corona cases. Accordingly, more than 37,800 new infections and 446 deaths were counted within 24 hours. This increased the total number of registered corona cases to just under 862,700. More than 40,500 people have died so far with the Sars-CoV‑2 virus. For the 60 million citizens there is now a night curfew from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. Exceptions are permitted for commuting to work or for medical reasons. Museums across the country are closed. Higher schools and universities need to move to online teaching.
One in four lives in a high-risk zone
In addition, four regions are red zones with an extensive partial lockdown that applies around the clock. Affected are the economically strong Lombardy, Piedmont and the Aosta Valley in the north and Calabria in the south. A quarter of Italians live in these high-risk areas. People there should largely stay at home. Exceptions apply, for example, to commuting to work or shopping. Anyone traveling must have a written self-assessment with their reasons. Bars, restaurants and shops that do not sell essentials are closed. Take-away sales in bars are still allowed.
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The metropolis of Milan, however, did not seem nearly as deserted on Friday as it was with the much stricter locks in March and April, as reported by Italian media. At that time, numerous companies also had to close down. The government now wants to avoid that. In Turin in Piedmont, too, parents brought young children to primary schools, which are still open. Others had a quick morning coffee while standing in front of bars. Several hundred people reportedly demonstrated in Bergamo in Lombardy on Thursday evening. Bergamo was badly hit in the first Corona wave. In the current second wave, the number of cases in the city is less dramatic than in other parts of the region. Regional politicians from Lombardy, Liguria and Calabria once again called for their hazard classification to be checked. In Campania with the metropolis of Naples, however, those responsible fear a collapse of the hospital system. You want an increased risk level. Overall, the government has divided the country into three risk zones: There are red, orange and yellow areas. In the zones in the middle (orange), people are allowed to leave their house. But it is forbidden to drive to other places or regions. Here, too, exceptions apply, for example for commuting to work. Rome assigned the popular holiday destinations Sicily and Apulia to this level. Most of the rest of Italy is “yellow” — with moderate restrictions. This also includes the capital Rome. In the past day, the streets there were already much emptier than around mid-October. All the new tightening will initially apply until December 3rd.