Protests against more recent COVID-19 restrictions have shaken Europe over the weekend, with protests seen in popular cities like Amsterdam, Brussels, Rome and Vienna.
Protests in Vienna broke out on Sunday after Austria began its fourth national lockdown due to the current wave of the pandemic. The start of the lockdown saw people being asked to work from home and shops termed as non-essential asked to close down.
The Chancellor of Austria has previously said that the new Austrian lockdown would run for at most 20 days. The country has also previously announced that COVID-19 vaccinations will be made compulsory in the country from February 1 next year, making it the first country to hold COVID vaccination as compulsory.
In Belgium, the protests on Sunday resulted in a clash between the police and the tens of thousands of protesters who marched through Brussels’ city centre. The protest was dubbed the “Protest for Freedom” and was primarily aimed at speaking against stricter COVID restrictions, and was attended by about 35,000 people according to the police.
In the Netherlands, demonstrations went on for the third straight day after a lot of violent scenes in Rotterdam which were accompanied by arrests. After this, thousands more gathered in Amsterdam for more demonstrations.
The troubles seen in Rotterdam spread over to result in more serious trouble in The Hague on Saturday night, after reports of chaos in smaller Dutch towns. The highly aggressive demonstrations in Rotterdam on Friday resulted in the arrests of over 50 people, with the city’s mayor describing the event as an “orgy of violence”.
The Dutch police resorted to using water cannons and also fired warning shots which ended up causing injuries to more than two people, after the protesters set fire to a police car, attacked police officers with rocks and set off fireworks in the area.
Many Dutch citizens are against the government’s lockdown measures which have seen slightly public places close at 8 p.m. These measures are currently due to last until December 4 at the earliest.