Drastic measures
Russia in the corona nightmare: the Kremlin sends millions into four-month quarantine and orders compulsory leave
Moscow, Russia: Metro wagons are being disinfected in an attempt to slow the corona pandemic
© Vladimir Astapkovich / Picture Alliance
The fourth corona wave is raging in Russia. Around 1,000 people succumb to the virus every day. There is now a four-month curfew in Moscow for two million people. As a new lockdown looms, Putin is sending the whole country on vacation.
While Europe breathes a sigh of relief after the peak of the fourth corona wave, the virus is raging in Russia with unrestrained force. Hardly a day goes by without a new negative record. On Wednesday, the Russian health authorities reported a shocking 1,028 deaths within 24 hours – a new high since the pandemic began. At the same time, 34,073 new infections were registered.
The past has already shown how unreliable and inadequate the official corona data of the Russian authorities are. The various offices exposed a large part of their forgeries themselves (such as the star reported here). The number of unreported cases should therefore beat even the terrifying official figures by a lot.
The authorities are now going back to drastic measures. In Moscow, from October 25, all over 60-year-olds and people with chronic illnesses have to submit to a “home regime”. They are no longer allowed to leave their houses and apartments – initially until February 25, 2022. The quarantine obligation applies for at least four months. The mayor of the capital, Sergei Sobyanin, announced this on Tuesday.
“My dear grandmothers and grandfathers, I know how troublesome and uncomfortable the current restrictions are,” said Sobjanin. “But there is simply no other way to save you from a serious illness. Please get vaccinated. This is how you protect your health and you can keep your usual way of life,” the mayor concluded his statement.
Vaccinated and convalescents are excluded from the regulation. Of the three million Muscovites over 60, however, only 1.14 million are vaccinated, according to Sobyanin. Almost two million citizens are facing a four-month curfew. And Moscow could just be the beginning. The capital is often used as a huge open-air testing laboratory. What has proven itself here will later be used throughout the country.
In Russia, the signs are pointing to lockdown
What is already looming for all of Russia is a new lockdown. On Tuesday, Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova appealed to President Vladimir Putin to declare the week from October 30th to November 7th as non-working, in some regions even from October 23rd. Such appeals have a theatrical character in Russian politics: they are the first act in a great drama that has already been written. The dramaturgy is always the same: a subordinate turns to Putin with an appeal, only so that he can patronize the request. This time, too, the scenario was repeated. On Wednesday afternoon, Putin approved the introduction of the non-working week.
Again the Russians are forcibly sent on vacation. A method that was used several times during the pandemic. During this time, the employees on leave have to forego wages and salaries – and that while the economic situation is driving many into poverty anyway.
Apparently not only a week off is planned for Moscow, but a new lockdown should the corona numbers continue to rise in the coming days. That reports the Russian edition of “Forbes” magazine citing a document from the city administration and several sources from the industries concerned. Accordingly, the Moscow authorities plan to restrict access to restaurants, cafes, shops, beauty salons, cinemas and clinics for the period from October 30 to November 7 – including those who have been vaccinated and those who have recovered.
Destructive testimony to the Kremlin’s corona policy
The disastrous corona situation is a devastating testimony to the Kremlin in particular. In the run-up to the parliamentary elections last September, the government avoided everything in order to appear in a bad light. The pandemic was repeatedly declared over, almost all measures were lifted, state media were only allowed to report on the corona developments in the late evening hours. Nothing should endanger the ruling United Russia party.
At the same time, the Kremlin’s vaccination campaign failed. And that although Putin personally announced the breakthrough on August 11, 2020. For the first time in the world, a vaccine against the coronavirus had been approved: Sputnik V.
However, the Kremlin has not yet presented any scientific evidence for the effectiveness of the vaccine. Putin was unable to dispel suspicion – especially not in Russia. According to official information, only 30 percent of the population are vaccinated. The black market for fake vaccination cards is booming. Around half of Russians refuse to be vaccinated, despite all restrictions and constraints.
The constant propaganda cannot remedy this either. Now even Kremlin loyalists are starting to admit failure, even if they never put the blame on the government. A few days ago, the presenter and TV health guru Elene Malysheva caused a sensation. She wrote on Instagram: “You have to clearly admit that there is a very bad, terrible coronavirus situation in the Russian Federation. The thing is that our citizens are not vaccinated, so we have a high incidence. You have to sound all the alarm bells because when it comes to daily mortality, we are leaders in the whole world. “
Just the fact that this fact is publicly admitted by a propagandist is a curiosity. And Malysheva goes even further: “The whole world is closing the pandemic. Only we cannot get out of it. That is shameful …”
“Our Sputnik vaccine is really effective and safe! Get vaccinated, ladies and gentlemen!” She exclaims repeatedly. It remains to be seen whether that will help. “Society knows that if the Kremlin propagates something, it doesn’t mean anything good,” scoffed Leonid Volkov, a close associate of the imprisoned opposition politician Alexei Navalny.