The state of emergency in the Czech Republic will end at midnight on Sunday, April 11th. The government has announced the loosening of several measures beginning from Monday. Other measures will remain in place, but based on the pandemic law, which will replace the state of emergency from April 12th. Photo Credit: Freepik / Illustrative Photo.
Czech Rep., Apr 7 (BD) – The state of emergency in the Czech Republic will end at midnight on Sunday, April 11th. In response to the slightly improved epidemiological situation, the government has announced that some measures will be relaxed from Monday, with others to stay in place based on the Pandemic Law, which will replace the state of emergency from April 12th. Here we summarise the key points from the loosening of restrictions.
Freedom of movement
The restrictions on movement between districts and after 9pm will end.
Schools
From Monday, April 12th, children in pre-school classes and in the first tier of primary school (years 1-5) will be able to return to normal school attendance. Schools with a maximum of 75 pupils in the first tier which have a separate building (including a canteen) will be able to function normally. In other cases a weekly alternating schedule will be reintroduced with half the students attending at a time.
The condition for pupils returning to full-time education will be the completion of a non-invasive Covid-19 antigen test on Mondays and Thursdays. Employees of school facilities will also be regularly tested – twice a week for those who are in contact with children, once a week for others. Testing will not be required for those who have tested positive for Covid-19 in the last 90 days, those with a valid test from an official testing center, or those who have been fully vaccinated. Education Minister Robert Plaga said that “more than 120,000 teachers have already been vaccinated within the priority profession of pedagogical and non-pedagogical staff, which should further increase the security of pupils’ return to school.”
The government says it has reserved enough antigen tests for schools. By the end of the school year, more than 21.9 million tests will be needed. At present, more than 7.5 million tests are available, which are now being distributed to the regions with the help of local Fire Departments.
Shops and services
Certain categories of retail and services can reopen. From Monday, children’s clothing and footwear stores, stationery stores, laundromats and dry cleaners, locksmiths, and establishments selling car parts will be able to open. The permitted hours for retail will be extended to 10pm, as well as for serving guests in hotel restaurants or operating dispensing windows.
Under strict hygiene conditions, mobile food outlets and market stalls will be allowed to sell fruit and vegetables, flowers and other plants, seeds, milk products, meat, fish, eggs, and baked and sweet products. Disinfectants must be provided at any individual stands, and it will not be permitted to operate catering services, or sell food or drink intended for immediate consumption. Tables and seats will not be permitted anywhere.
Other changes
Zoological and botanical gardens can reopen to the public, though capacity will be limited to 20%, and visitors will not be able to enter indoor pavilions. Traditional events and gatherings such as pilgrimages, parades, tastings, and celebrations will also be allowed with no more than 20 people outdoors and 10 people indoors. Weddings and funerals will be limited to 15 people. The general right of assembly will be limited to a maximum of one hundred people.
The government also eased the current ban on the provision of planned care in critical inpatient care facilities. Medical facilities will thus be able to start admitting patients for planned procedures again, but they must be able to convert their bed capacity for patients with Covid-19 if necessary. Prison inmates can be visited by up to two people at the same time.
