• Saturday, 23 November 2024

Several thousand join Vienna protests against new Covid measures

Several thousand join Vienna protests against new Covid measures
Vienna, 20 November 2021 (dpa/MIA) — Several thousand people took to the streets in Austria on Saturday to protest against the country's proposed new coronavirus restrictions. Police estimated that around 7,000 people took part in the demonstration in the capital Vienna on Saturday afternoon. [caption id="attachment_1383860" align="alignnone" width="1024"] 20 November 2021, Austria, Vienna: People wave flags and hold placards at Heldenplatz during a protest against the upcoming nationwide coronavirus lockdown. Photo: Florian Wieser/APA/dpa[/caption] The participants protested the lockdown, which will take effect on Monday, and the legal obligation to get vaccinated, which will take effect in 2022, calling them coercive measures. "Freedom" was chanted again and again by demonstrators, many of whom didn't wear FFP2 masks and were thus in violation of the rules. [caption id="attachment_1383859" align="alignnone" width="1024"] 20 November 2021, Austria, Vienna: People march with flags and placards at Heldenplatz during a protest against the upcoming nationwide coronavirus lockdown. Photo: Florian Wieser/APA/dpa[/caption] However, the 1,300-strong police presence kept a low profile. "There are no incidents worth mentioning so far," a police spokesperson said on Saturday afternoon, noting however that the situation was dynamic and that the authorities were expecting more and more people to join the demonstration later in the day.