In Poland, people are protesting against the ban on abortions. Other European Union countries are tightening travel rules. February is knocking on the door, and along with it come changes in the metropolis. Who will become the new vaccination coordinator in Prague? All this and more will be covered in today's Early Bird.
New vaccination coordinator for Prague
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OčkováníSource: Pixabay.com/KitzD66
From February, Praguers will have a new vaccination coordinator. The man in charge will be Martin Ježek, director of the health department of the City of Prague. The current coordinator, David Doležil, who has been in office since the beginning, decided to leave at the end of January. He will continue to carry out the function of the director of the Municipal Polyclinic in Prague. For his extraordinary commitment during his work as a vaccination coordinator, he received thanks from Milena Johnová, Councilor of the City of Prague for Health Care and Social Policy. Although the vaccination coordinator is supposed to be the most important person in the whole vaccination process, the leadership of the capital continues to criticize the government for poor communication and limited competencies, both of which prevents the coordinators from working more effectively. The city is currently working on its own "Prague vaccination strategy" and believes that in the foreseeable future, the ever-changing conditions dictated by the state can be improved.
“In the very specific situation prevailing in the capital, where Prague doesn't have its own distribution vaccination site and the existing ones are organizations directly managed by the Ministry of Health, I will strive primarily for maximum effective communication and cooperation of all entities involved in the vaccination process in the metropolis. This is the only way we'll be able to handle this very difficult task together,”
outlined the new coordinator Martin Ježek.
Dům na prodej 7kk - Praha 6, 307m2, Praha 6
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France closes its borders for most passengers outside the EU
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LetištěSource: Pixabay.com/MichaelGaida
The unfavorable development of the global pandemic is not conducive to travel. Just a few days after the Czech Republic had tightened the measures and banned all foreigners who didn't have compelling reasons from entering the country, other EU countries followed. French Prime Minister Jean Castex also announced new restrictions in the fight against Covid-19. From Sunday, all non-essential travel from outside the EU will be banned, while testing requirements on travellers from within the EU will be tightened.
"We want to do everything in our power to avoid another lockdown. The coming days will be decisive,"
said Jean Castex.
Protests in Poland
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Protesty ve VaršavěSource: Profimedia.cz
Thousands of people across Poland are rioting despite the government measures in place. On Friday, crowds took to the streets to protest the total abortion ban, which had been put it into force by the Conservative Polish government during the week. According to the new law, abortion can be performed legally only in cases of fetal abnormality, rape or incest, or threat to the mother’s life. Doctors opposing this law can face imprisonment. Abortions in Poland have been a topic for a long time, and already in October the local Constitutional Court made it almost impossible to perform a legal abortion.
The Black Lives Matter Foundation has won the Swedish Human Rights Award
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Protesty Black Lives Matter Source: Freepik.com
The Black Lives Matter Global Network has been awarded the Swedish Olof Palme Award. Black Lives Matter appeared in America in 2013 and began to highlight racial inequality. It has it has gained public awareness particularly last year, when people all over the world took to the streets and protested against police brutality with an alleged racist subtext. The Swedish award for human rights Olof Palme commemorates the Prime Minister and prominent human rights defender of the same name who was assassinated in Stockholm in 1986. The award ceremony will take place today, however, it will be held online.
"This shows that racism and racist violence is not just a problem in American society, but a global problem,"
stated the organizers of the Olof Palme award. This is not the first major nomination for BLM. Norwegian MEP Petter Eide even nominated the organisation for this year's Nobel Peace Prize.
A banned British documentary about the royal family leaked to YouTube
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Královna Alžběta II. s manželemSource: Profimedia.cz
The infamous 1969 documentary about the British royal family, which was allegedly banned by Queen Elizabeth II, has mysteriously leaked on the popular platform YouTube. The documentary was supposedly banned because it gave the public an all-too-intimate insight into the life of the royal family. The film saw the light of day in the 1970s. Almost immediately, it won the favor of millions of viewers. It was later removed from the screens at the request of Buckingham Palace and stored in the archives. It is not known how the film called "The Royal Family" was discovered, or who posted it on YouTube, but soon after the copyright complaint had been filed, the video was quickly removed again. The Buckingham Palace declined to comment on the situation.
That's all we have for you today. We wish you a peaceful Saturday and let's not forget the words of the British singer and composer John Lennon:
"Life is what happens to us while we are making other plans."
