Coronavirus: Sweden abandons its soft strategy and …

The government of Sweden, characterized by the adoption of a “soft” strategy in the face of the pandemic, announced on Monday that from November 24 public gatherings of more than 8 people will be prohibited, a measure that aims to stop the coronavirus infections which continue to increase in the country.

The meetings, which until now could be from 50 to 300 people depending on the case, will be 8 from November 24 and for 4 weeks, a “necessary” restriction to be made. lower the contagion curve, explained Prime Minister Stefan Lofven at a press conference.

it’s about the second ban announced in less than a week by the Swedish authorities, after having communicated that they will not allow alcohol sale from 10 p.m. and bars, restaurants and nightclubs will close at 10:30 p.m.

The Swedish coronavirus strategy, the worst-hit country in Scandinavia, has so far been more lax than that of its neighbors, calling for individual responsibility, with many recommendations but few bans.

This new measure, Löfven explained, has become necessary in view of the less respect for recommendations by the population, a situation which for the Prime Minister is “understandable” because of the long duration of the pandemic. To deal with this easing, said the official, it is important to act quickly to limit infections, even with a decision “unprecedented in modern times”.

The situation of the country “is complicated and at the same time simple: we live in a time of trials. And it will get worse. Do your duty take responsibility for stopping the spread. Don’t go to the gym, library, dinner, or parties. Stay at home, ”Löfven asked.

Second hello

After a difficult spring, in which Sweden recorded five times more deaths than Denmark and ten more than Norway, albeit with lower mortality than the worst-affected countries in Europe, the situation is turning is greatly improved in summer and contagion levels have reached to be below the rest of the Nordic countries.

However, numbers have skyrocketed in the past two weeks. According to the most recent data from the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), there was 511.9 new cases per 100,000 inhabitants in the last 14 days, twice that of Denmark and more than the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.

“The rapid increase we have seen in Europe has come here with great force. The burden on health has clearly increased and that speaks of growing contagion,” said Director of the Public Health Agency, Johan Carlson, for whom it is necessary that give up “all that is not absolutely necessary”.