Photo : REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger
26 November 2021, Friday | NIAS Europe Daily Brief #53
IN FOCUS
By Joeana Cera Matthews
Austria: Protests emerge against fresh COVID-19 restrictions
On 23 November, the World Health Organization (WHO), on assessing Europe's deteriorating pandemic situation, warned: "Cumulative reported deaths are projected to reach over 2.2 million by spring next year, based on current trends." The fourth wave of the pandemic has led to the imposition of tighter restrictions across Europe. This attempt to curb the surge has triggered large-scale protests all over the continent. Austria is one of the most affected countries – both in terms of the increasing cases as well as the violent protests.
What happened?
On 22 November, Austria declared its fourth nationwide lockdown – the first full lockdown imposed by an EU country this winter. This move essentially forced 8.9 million Austrians to be home-bound except for reasons such as going to work, exercising, and procuring necessities. Following the declaration, Austrian Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg said: "It's a problem for the whole society because even those that are vaccinated, if they don't have access to an intensive care unit because they're blocked by those who are not vaccinated and got sick, so then they are affected as well."
On 20 November, around 40,000 people gathered in central Vienna in a demonstration against the government's decision of a partial lockdown. The protestors held banners with slogans that read "no to vaccination" and "enough is enough".
What is the background?
First, the multiple actors. The primary groups protesting the newly imposed restrictions include far-right parties, anti-vaccine and anti-mask groups along with apolitical groups who are vaccine-hesitant. The diverse crowd is united by their common discontent towards the government – especially regarding the management of COVID-19. Despite this being the general actors in play, there exists a demographic divide. The vulnerable groups of the population refrain from participating in protests; this may be attributed to the fact that there is a higher rate of inoculation in these groups compared to the rest of the population.
Second, the multiple reasons. On 19 November, Austria declared that the COVID-19 vaccinations would be a legal requirement from February 2022. This only strengthens the argument for those who advocate the slogan of 'my body, my choice' since forcing people into inoculation violates an individual's freedom and are increasingly termed as a "restriction of human rights". The government has also been called a 'coronavirus dictatorship' since its coercion tactic to increase the declining immunity is seen as a desperate measure. The economic factor is another concern. Protesters primarily consist of those small businessmen whose daily lives are being affected by the restrictions. Their lives are at a standstill due to the haphazardly implemented lockdowns. Some others protest since the restrictive measures disrupt their ability of moving freely, inevitably frustrating them.
Third, Austria's peculiar protests. Austria has seen COVID-19 protests earlier as well. However, unlike the rest of Europe, the protests here are strengthened by the presence of the Freedom Party (FPÖ). Being one among the largest opposition parties in the country, the backing of the FPÖ makes it difficult for the government to convince the people of the necessity of its measures. Schallenberg even commented on the same: "It's irresponsible, especially if you consider that a large percentage of the representatives of this party are vaccinated, but still spread fake news about deworming remedies... This is a major difference between us and other European countries."
What does this mean?
First, the loss of trust. People largely feel betrayed by the government since the measures adopted till date seem to have been futile. Some of the protesters expressed their discontent with the latest measures, stating that they had lost trust in the government's ability to curb the pandemic. They opine that the government themselves are unaware of what to do.
Second, the helpless government. The vaccine take-up in the country is 65 percent, which is less than the EU average. Despite the widespread protests, there is only so much the government can do to quell the protests. The measures are repetitive and uncomfortable; however, the only way to curb the larger health crisis is by resorting to such radical measures.
References
Matthew Karnitschnig, "Austrian chancellor hits out at far-right anti-vaxxers," POLITICO, 24 November 2021.
Oliver Pieper, "Europe′s fight against the coronavirus | Europe | News and current affairs from around the continent," Deutsche Welle, 24 November 2021.
"Covid: WHO says it is very worried about Europe surge," BBC, 21 November 2021.
"Austria to go into full lockdown as Covid surges," BBC, 20 November 2021.
“Covid: Dutch partial Covid lockdown sparks protests,” BBC, 13 November 2021.
IN BRIEF
By Vaishnavi Iyer and Padmashree Anandhan
REGIONAL
The foreign officials of the UK and EU to negotiate on the Northern Ireland Protocol
The Brexit minister and EU counterpart are scheduled to meet to negotiate on the Northern Ireland Protocol as disagreements arise between both. During the Brexit deal, all parties agreed to safeguard the 1998 Northern Ireland peace deal. The deal meant keeping the land border open without cameras or border posts to check the flow of goods. It was easier when the UK was part of the EU, but after Brexit, an arrangement had to be made to check certain goods coming from Northern Ireland. This arrangement was known as the Northern Ireland Protocol. Under this, Northern Ireland agreed to follow the EU standards for the products exported to the UK to avoid border checks. The goods that are entering from the UK will be checked instead. The UK and EU agreed to put this issue off in 2019 to prevent the rift, but the check inside Northern Ireland has aggravated, creating an Irish Sea Border. The serious check has caused difficulties for the UK and has proposed imposing Article 16 as a solution. Article 16 is a provision which will bar parts of the protocol from being unilaterally suspended if problems arise. (John Campbell, "Brexit: UK and EU to meet for more Northern Ireland Protocol talks," BBC, 26 November 2021; Tom Edgington and Chris Morris, "Brexit: What's the Northern Ireland Protocol?," BBC, 08 November 2021)
European commission drafts a law for users to identify paid political ads
On 25 November, the European Commission announced its plans to mandate the online platforms to label their advertising as political or not. Big tech companies like Google and Facebook, and other social media giants will disclose the parties funding the ads and their methods of targeting the voters. European Commission Vice-President Vera Jourova said that "People must know why they are seeing an ad, who paid for it, how much, and what micro-targeting criteria were used. Digital advertising for political purposes is becoming an unchecked race of dirty and opaque methods." This rule is as a way to ensure the online users are aware of the source of the advertisement and it is also to ban the techniques used by the political parties to use sensitive personal user data on social media. One exception will be to the posts done by the politicians on their personal accounts. This rule is set to be finalized by 2023, which is a year before the European Parliament elections. ("EU unveils plans to make political ads more transparent," Deutsche Welle, 25 November 2021)
THE UNITED KINGDOM
Authorities requested to take serious action to safeguard migrants in the English Channel
On 24 November, authorities tried to identify the bodies of at least 27 individuals who drowned. The drowning victims appeared to be mostly Iraqi Kurds, with 17 males, seven women (one of whom was pregnant), and three children among them. Two survivors are being treated in a Calais hospital. Consequently, UK ministers were warned to take urgent action and "stop playing politics with people's lives." Boris Johnson outlined a five-step action plan to prevent drownings which was shared with French president Emmanuel Macron. They include - "Joint patrols to prevent boats from leaving French beaches, technology such as sensors and radar, reciprocal maritime patrols and airborne surveillance, improved intelligence-sharing to arrest and prosecute people smugglers, and a bilateral returns agreement with France alongside talks to establish a UK-EU returns agreement are among them." Humanitarian organizations agreed that more deaths were probable, and requested the UK government to create safe and legal channels for migration along with strengthening the current settlement plan. In addition, a criminal investigation has been launched. (Jamie Grierson, Jon Henley, and Dan Sabbagh, "UK ministers urged to 'stop playing politics' over Channel crossings," The Guardian, 25 November 2021)
SLOVAKIA
Slovakia issues apology to Roma women
The Slovakian government has apologized for the mistreatment and forceful sterilization of thousands of Roma women, a practice that continued until 2004 despite the country's ratification of Roman rights. For decades, thousands of Roma women in Slovakia were forcefully sterilized, which lasted until 2004. The administration has now issued an official apology. The ruling alliance criticized years of maltreatment of ethnic minorities. Issuing a formal apology, the Slovakian government criticized the maltreatment of the Roma ethnic minorities that began under the communist administration in 1966. Dunja Mijatovic, the Council of Europe's human rights commissioner, praised the "apology to victims of forced sterilisation as a first crucial step" in a statement on Twitter. The public apology came just a day before the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. (Alex Berry, "Slovakia issues apology for forced sterilizations of Roma women," Deutsche Welle, 25 November 2021)
GERMANY
Challenges ahead for the new German coalition
Recently the trio coalition published its political road map of a 178-page document called the "Dare to Make More Progress." There were many positive highlights in the document keeping climate change, bonus to health workers, digitalization, and reducing the voting age of youth from 18 to 16. The document also helped in identifying the challenges ahead. Two most important challenges will be handling the Covid situation and the Migrant crisis. According to Olaf Scholz "We should make vaccination mandatory in places that care for particularly vulnerable groups." Apart from that, the frozen pension contributions and new debt moratorium to be on hold. ("What are the key issues for Germany's new government?," Deutsche Welle, 25 November, 2021)
RUSSIA
More than 52 people succumb to fire at Russian coal mine
Following an apparent fire at a Russian coal mine, at least 52 people have died underground. Members of a rescue squad who died while searching for the missing miners are included in the total. According to initial reports, the catastrophe looked to be caused by coal dust catching fire and filling the mine with smoke through the ventilation system. According to early data, the catastrophe was caused by a methane explosion, according to Deputy Prosecutor General Dmitry Demeshin. The tragedy resulted in the injuries of 49 individuals. Two hundred thirty-nine miners from the Listvyazhnaya coal mine in southern Siberia have been transported to the surface, according to the Emergencies Ministry. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said President Vladimir Putin had offered his condolences to the relatives of those slain and hoped that those still missing may be rescued.In response to the occurrence, authorities proclaimed three days of mourning. The trapped miners have been assumed dead considering the perishable self-rescue system with oxygen and the absence of communication with the miners for more than 12 hours after the accident.. ("Russia: Over 50 people die in Siberian mine," Deutsche Welle, 25 November 2021)
POLAND
Poland revises schemes to assist households against inflation
On 25 November, a scheme worth up to GBP 2.14 billion was unveiled as cash transfers to households. In 2022, these payments will be income-based and split into two installments. The initiative is to facilitate financial security in dealing with the rising inflation. Mateusz Jakub Morawiecki, Poland's Prime Minister said: "The Polish government is acting to... ease, buffer against this inflation growth." Petrol taxes will also be reduced to EU standards. The scheme is to be operating from 20 December, for five months. In the months of January and March, the value-added tax (VAT) on gasoline will be reduced from 23 percent to 8 percent. Moreover, VAT on electricity will be reduced from 23 percent to 5 percent. The reductions follow revisions to Poland's tax system announced earlier this year, which the country's ruling Law and Justice Party dubbed the "Polish order" (PiS). According to research released by the Polish government in September, nearly 9 million Polish citizens will stop paying income tax in 2022, and 70 percent of retirees will pay no tax. ("Poland to cut fuel and energy taxes in anti-inflation shield," Deutsche Welle, 25 November 2021)