Saturday lunchtime in a restaurant in Straßlach-Dingharting. A middle-aged couple enters the room, with smartphones drawn, the two approach the waitress. But the man immediately says: “We have proof of vaccination, but now we have no IDs with us.” Until recently, they would probably have gotten away with it anywhere, but in this case the waitress is tough. You need an ID or at least a driver’s license, it could be that the police are checking the guests. The rejected guests leave without much discussion.
A little later, in the same restaurant, it becomes clear that not everyone is taking it that seriously. Another waiter welcomes a larger family. He has the vaccination certificates shown and then asks everyone: “You have IDs with you?” He expressly does not want to see the documents. “That’ll fit. It’s only important if the police come.”
And that should now happen more often. Because from this Wednesday on, stricter rules apply. 3 G becomes 2 G, 2 G becomes 2 G plus. This is what Prime Minister Markus Söder announced last week. Unvaccinated people have to stay outside, and those who have so far refused to be injected against the virus are only allowed to meet five other unvaccinated people. That is strictly controlled, stressed Söder. For the district office and the police, this means more work and even greater “instinct”, as Armin Ganserer knows. “Life will certainly not get any easier for the colleagues outside,” says the head of the police station in Ottobrunn.
Now the task of checking compliance with the currently applicable Corona requirements is nothing new for the police officers. Corona strips have been in use for almost two years. In the first few waves you had to check how many people are meeting, whether alcohol is being drunk, and whether the innkeepers are observing curfew hours. What is new in the fourth wave is that you have to differentiate between those who have been vaccinated and those who have not been vaccinated. And that doesn’t make things any easier.
“We mostly go to restaurants at the moment,” says Siegfried Graf, who, as the head of the police station in Unterhaching, is responsible for the entire Hachinger Valley. Most people understand that they are being controlled, he says. Private individuals would be contacted if, for example, a neighbor calls in because a party is taking place next door. But that’s no different than a year ago, says Graf. After all: At the current time of year it is a bit quieter than it was in summer, when his people had to go to the landscape park or their colleagues to the Isar more often because there was a party. The control is primarily the responsibility of the district administration, says Graf. In difficult cases, the police officers therefore accompany the employees of the district office.
They can show up without a reason or because they have received a tip. “For the organization and implementation of additional, random checks on a larger scale, as announced by the state government, the District Office is already in close contact with the responsible police forces, who usually accompany these checks, as well as in-house with the colleagues in health law enforcement” , informs the authority. In addition, additional staff was requested both through internal delegation and through corresponding inquiries, for example from the Free State.
Most of the controlled show themselves to be very understanding
You have to see how things go then, says the head of the Oberschleissheim police station, Stefan Schraut. But he remains calm, because the experience of the past few weeks would have shown that most people welcomed the reviews. “They say: thank God someone controls that, it’s good that you’re there.” But that can also mean that you are sent home. Schraut reports on a case in which the guest wanted to show the police officer his vaccination certificate and then the battery was apparently empty. But then he was very insightful.
Of course, there are always a few hosts who are very indifferent to the applicable rules. “They don’t care and those who stick to everything are stupid,” says Schraut. The police pay regular visits to those who do not see things and, if necessary, issue a trade ban. They would not get more people in the inspection for the controls, but if necessary, if something really was important, they would be supported by their Munich colleagues, says Schraut.
Armin Ganserer has had good experiences in his area of work with informing the innkeepers of their duties two days before the new rules come into force. “We always had a positive response, and with the exception of a few who always push everything to the limit, all of them stick to it.” In the case of simple violations, the police can now issue a warning, which then costs the rule breaker 55 euros. “But we are always careful to maintain proportionality,” says Ganserer.