Thursday, March 19, 2020

COVID-19 France: French people need to fill out a form to leave the house during coronavirus lockdown

Like China, Italy, Iran, France now requires SPECIAL DOCUMENTS to leave the house. The next step is far worse.
DB

 ARIS, March 19 (Reuters)  — As France heads into day two of its two-week lockdown to curb the coronavirus epidemic, people are now required to fill out a form justifying their reasons to leave the house.
On Tuesday, President Emmanuel Macron announced a nationwide lockdown for the next 15 days, saying that people’s ability to go outside will be “greatly reduced”. Now, if someone wishes to leave their house, they must fill out a form with their name, birthdate and check off one of the given reasons for going outside — work, essential errands, healthcare, family reasons and/or individual exercise.
Police patrolling the boulevards can stop drivers and pedestrians and demand that they present their forms. If they fail to do so, police can issue fines of of €38 to €135 ($40 to $150). The form can be downloaded on the ministry website and citizens can present an electronic version on their smartphones.
Macron’s government is deploying more than 100,000 police nationwide to enforce the restrictions. Those who breach the conditions will be fined, although police were showing leniency in the first hours of the lockdown.
“For now we’re just explaining things. Tomorrow we’ll start fining people,” said one riot police officer manning a checkpoint in the upmarket Left Bank district, according to the Business Insider.
Police officers question people walking in public after a government enforced quarantine on March 17, 2020 in Paris, France. On March 17, 2020 France imposed a nationwide lockdown to control the spread of COVID-19. Veronique de Viguerie/Getty Images
The ramped up measures come after people reportedly refused to heed the government’s earlier suggestions to stay at home and avoid public spaces. While announcing the closure of businesses like shops, cafes, restaurants, clubs and cinemas over the weekend, French Prime Minister Édouard Philippe said: “We have seen too many people in cafes and restaurants. In usual times, this would make me happy, because this is the France we all love. But for a few weeks, this is not what we should be doing.”
Philippe added that there were plans to increase the fine for violations to 135 euros ($148), from 30 euros now.
“We ask the French people to stay at home…We ask them firmly,” he said in an interview with the France 2 television station.
Since Wednesday morning, the police deployed to enforce the lockdown has carried out 70,000 controls and handed out 4,095 tickets to those flouting the lockdown, said Interior Minister Christophe Castaner.
“The 15-day period may be extended. If necessary, the government will re-conduct it,” Castaner told Europe 1 radio station.
As in many other European countries including Italy, Germany and Spain, schools are closed, restaurants and bars shuttered and factories idle.
Why do the secret police with license to kill powers, always wear black, regardless of country?
Police officers patrol the streets after a government enforced quarantine on March 17, 2020 in Paris, France. On March 17, 2020 France imposed a nationwide lockdown to control the spread of COVID-19. Veronique de Viguerie/Getty Images
Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said France might nationalize big companies reeling from the market fallout.
He said he would mobilize 45 billion euros in emergency measures to help firms weather the storm, money that comes on top of 300 billion euros in government loan guarantees.
Le Maire said the unexpected strain on public finances meant he would have to tear up his 2020 budget. With the economy now forecast to shrink 1%, the state deficit is expected to blow out to 3.9% of gross domestic product from a target of 2.2%.
In some supermarkets, shelves were empty of flour, pasta and long-life milk. A Monoprix supermarket near the Eiffel Tower store had marked out one-meter intervals in tape at the tills to remind customers to keep distance from one another and sought payment by card to minimize infection risk.
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