Ukraine could have over 20,000 new COVID19 cases each day if the government-imposed weekend lockdown doesn’t work, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal told the parliament on Nov. 17.
“If the weekend quarantine does not provide the necessary reduction in the number of social contacts, then, according to the analysts of the National Security and Defense Council, the mark of 20,000 (new) infections every day will be crossed in three weeks,” Shmyhal said on Nov. 17 from the parliament stand.
The weekend lockdown was imposed by a government decree on Nov. 11, prompting criticism from businesses that rely on Saturdays and Sundays for much of their turnover. Under the weekend lockdown, non-essential businesses, including restaurants, are obligated to stay closed for 48 hours, from 12 a.m. on Saturdays to 12 a.m. on Mondays.
The weekend lockdown began on Saturday, Nov. 14, and will last until at least Nov. 30, covering three weekends.
The measure comes as an attempt to curtail the pandemic that is getting out of hand in Ukraine. Nearly 10,000 people died from COVID-19 in Ukraine, with the daily number of cases growing each week. On Nov. 17, Ukraine registered 11,968 new cases.
Local revolt
However, not everyone is fond of the government’s arbitrary pandemic response.
Multiple city authorities opted to ignore the weekend lockdown of businesses, imposed by the Ukrainian government to stop record-shattering increases in coronavirus infections.
Mayor of Dnipro Borys Filatov, who is looking to win re-election on Nov. 22, wrote on Facebook that all members of the city’s commission that is entitled to impose quarantine measures in the city suddenly got sick, hinting that no one will stop businesses from defying government orders.
In Lviv, Mayor Andriy Sadovyi, who is also seeking re-election, ended up with an exotic solution, issuing an act stating that the city of Lviv formally has no days off through Nov. 30.
Therefore, as the official explained, “since we have no weekends, it is impossible to introduce a weekend lockdown.” He also added that anyone facing a ban on working in Lviv should refer to the act or seek legal assistance from the city head’s lawyers.
The act has no legal stand since the government’s decree specifically mentions the name of the days on which non-essential businesses must be shut down. Lviv is currently still following the Gregorian calendar.
As a result, on the day the lockdown entered force, the police blocked at least four food markets working in Lviv.
In total, mayors of Lviv, Cherkasy, Ternopil, Zhytomyr, and Ivano-Frankivsk, as well as authorities in Dnipro, Chernihiv, and Lutsk, called on the government to revoke the decision, saying that the decree will leave thousands of people without jobs.
Most mayors have also stated that they support social-distancing and all necessary medical recommendations.
Government doesn’t back down
On Nov. 17, the parliament began a debate over the necessity of the weekend lockdown. Shmyhal attended the session, defending the government’s decree.
According to the prime minister, the lockdown must hold the number of new cases at a rate of 12,000-15,000 a day. If the weekend lockdown won’t succeed the government will look into the possibility of imposing stricter measures.
“In the next 2 weeks, we should see the first results, provided that absolutely all the rules are followed. If that doesn’t happen, we’ll start preparing for tougher quarantine restrictions,” said Shmyhal.
Earlier, President Volodymyr Zelensky promised to impose a nationwide lockdown if the number of new daily cases exceeds 9,500, however, that didn’t happen.
According to Health Minister Maksym Stepanov, Ukraine may run out of hospital beds for COVID-19 patients in need of intensive care as soon as mid-December if the rate of spread is not slowed.
The parliament eventually backed the government.
A motion recommending the government to lift the weekend lockdown was supported by 149 lawmakers out of the required 226. However, lawmakers supported a bill that would obligate the government to give a seven-day notice before imposing additional restrictions.
The bill, supported by 303 lawmakers, also required the government to provide a detailed plan about the measures that the government will take to help businesses and those in need of support if new restrictions to be introduced.
