Veils have 30 exceptions, not everyone may have them at demonstrations, police say
“There are more than thirty exceptions to the obligation to wear respiratory protection. It is impossible to cancel the matter and generalize that anyone who does not have a covered airway at the meeting does not comply with these anti-epidemic measures, “explained police spokesman Jan Daněk.
“Police officers dealt with eight offenses in connection with the rallies on November 17, and four offenses at the Letná rally about two weeks ago,” Daněk added for iDNES.cz, adding that two offenses and one crime are still under investigation and other police cases notified the administrative authority.
However, for example, the city district of Prague 1, which includes the Old Town Square with the most frequent demonstrations, has not registered any suggestions for investigation in the last six months.
The editors also turned to the Prague City Hall regarding the demonstrations, but the spokesman Tadeáš Provazník only referred to the Prague sanitary station and the police in his reply.
“In times of emergency, the police report these offenses to the administrative body, which is the Hygiene Station of the Capital City of Prague for the metropolis. In the event of an emergency, they report these offenses to the City of Prague as the competent authority. However, the state of emergency only applies from 26 November, “said Provazník.
However, the Prague Hygiene did not respond to questions about fines and inspections during the demonstrations, even after the emergency.
They had no veils and did not keep their distance
Three major demonstrations have taken place recently. One of them took place on November 17 in the Old Town Square. According to police estimates, about 10,000 people arrived at the Freedom Day.
The event was then called by the Open Czechia – Chcípl PES movement together with about three dozen other groups. Speakers called the government’s decision, based on efforts to limit the spread of the virus, unconstitutional. They called for people not to be afraid to defend the freedom they thought the government had taken away from them.
The participants in the demonstration did not have veils and did not keep any spacing. Some questioned the pandemic as such and denied the purpose of the vaccination. On the same day, however, the most infected in the Czech Republic per day since the beginning of the epidemic occurred, 22,479 cases.
Demonstration of the movement We will open the Czech-Wanted PES and dozens of other groups against anti-epidemic measures and “covid totalitarianism”. (November 17, 2021)
The editorial staff then contacted the chief hygienist Pavla Svrčinová, who supervises the measures on the spot and whether their violations will be fined. However, she only said for iDNES.cz: “This is a question for the Hygiene Station of the Capital City of Prague. Really unknown inspection plans for each individual station. I don’t know, maybe they’ve agreed with the police or the city police on who’s going to check there. “
Another large demonstration took place in Letná at the end of November, where about three thousand opponents of the vaccination arrived. Dozens of police officers supervised them, people did not keep their distance or had respirators on. The event was also called by the Wanted Dog initiative.
The convener must ensure that the measures are complied with
None of the participants also had a veil or respirator. “The organizer of the event calls on the participants to comply with the measures, currently I do not have specific information on how many cases we have dealt with non-compliance,” police spokesman Daněk told iDNES.cz on the day of the event.
“The convener will be reported to the municipality because he did not ensure that anti-epidemic measures were observed at the event. We will also announce several people for misdemeanor negotiations, “said Daněk after the end of the event, when the people broke up in peace.
The last demonstration ended on Sunday, December 12, when about 5,000 people on Wenceslas Square in Prague were opposed to compulsory vaccinations, which were approved by the government of Andrej Babiš for citizens over the age of 60 and for selected professions.
Eventually, the protesters marched through the center of Prague, arriving at the Office of the Government around 4 p.m. The event ended in the early evening on Hradčanské Square. One man was detained by police on suspicion of damaging the car. The demonstration was also convened by the Open Czech Republic movement – He wanted PES.
According to Danek’s spokesman, the organizers of the demonstration face a heavy fine. “The organizer of the assembly did not ensure violation of anti-epidemic measures. It will be notified to the administrative body, “he told Czech Television after the protest.
Daněk told iDNES.cz that it is primarily the convener’s responsibility to ensure compliance with the anti-epidemic measures of the assembly participants.
“If the convener does not ensure compliance with anti-epidemic measures at the assembly, we are notified to the relevant administrative body. We always notify the administrative body when these rules are violated at the meeting, “said Daněk, who also pointed out that the competent authority is entitled to impose a fine on the convener of the meeting, which also decides on its amount.
He wanted a dog without a fine and administrative proceedings
However, the chairman of the Chcípl Dog movement, Jakub Olbert, told iDNES.cz that the initiative is not facing a fine or administrative proceedings at the moment. “Nothing that could be related to the offense or crime. I would like to add that every demonstration takes place with the control of the police, where we cooperate with it a week or two before the demonstration and we have clear rules on what we should and should not do, “said Olbert.
He also stressed that the initiative during the demonstrations was guided by the challenges of the police. “If he tells us that we need to encourage citizens to put on our veils, we will do so. That’s where our authority ends. As organizers, we cannot persecute or enforce measures on them. This is a police matter. What happened to the media that we get a fine or something like that is not there, on what basis we should have a sanction, “said Olbert, reiterating that no one enforces the administrative proceedings or the fine on the initiative.
Police spokesman Daněk stated that he always solves the situation individually and depends on the many circumstances according to which they decide on the procedure. “Anyone who violates anti-epidemic measures can be fined by a police officer on the spot, to report the violation to the relevant administrative body or to use the institute of the so-called agreement,” he listed the options.
He also stated that airway obstruction applies to assembly participants who do not keep spacings of at least 1.5 meters and are not members of the same household. There are no special statistics on violations of police demonstration measures.
The dog called another demonstration for the weekend, this time it will take place in Brno. It will focus on mandatory vaccinations, which the initiative rejects.
“We are not against voluntary vaccination, we are only against compulsory vaccination, which is trying to establish a government here with the support of the Parliament of the Czech Republic! Instead of relevant information from experts, on the basis of which citizens could decide, the government is forcing us to vaccinate with the help of corruption and extortion tools !, ”says the initiative’s poster.
Representatives of firefighters, police officers, paramedics, doctors, students, teachers and citizens who do not agree with the compulsory vaccination and to whom it applies are also to perform at the demonstration. “Definitely bring drums, pots with a wooden spoon, sirens and various ratchets. We are for voluntary vaccinations! ”Adds the program of the event.