Weekly Post – June 6th 2021

Living through a pandemic

in the south of France

442 days in Carcassonne since

1st lockdown in March 2020

DAILY AND WEEKLY STATISTICS HERE

▫️ INFORMATION

The next stage of the deconfinement schedule starts on Wednesday June 9th. Curfew, teleworking, travel… What exactly is changing?

□ The curfew shifted
From 9 June, the French will be able to enjoy the terraces of bars and restaurants for two extra hours. From Wednesday, the curfew is again shifted, from 9pm currently to 11pm. To go out in the evening, without any time restrictions, you will have to wait. The curfew will be officially lifted on Wednesday 30 June.

□ Access to the country facilitated
France will ease the rules for access to its territory. From 9 June, all vaccinated Europeans (2 doses) will be able to enter the country on presentation of a paper vaccination certificate or a Health Pass validated by the European Union. Until 9 June, people over 11 years old will still have to present a negative PCR test less than 72 hours old to cross the border and return to French territory.

□ Teleworking made more flexible
The government has also decided to make the use of teleworking more flexible. Currently, the rule in companies is to systematically use telework for all activities that allow it. “From 9 June, companies will have to determine, following discussions between management and employee representatives, a minimum number of teleworking days for each employee,” explains the government website.

A minimum of three days of telework per week will be granted to civil servants, the government says. The quota will gradually decrease. “This development will enable all employees who suffer from isolation to return to their place of work”, the government concludes.

□ Reopening of indoor cafés and restaurants
Cafés and restaurants will once again be able to welcome customers indoors, but with a capacity of 50% for the time being and for tables of no more than 6 people.

For terraces, the restrictions have been eased. 100% capacity will now be allowed, with tables for a maximum of 6 people outside too.

□ Reopening of sports halls
On 9 June, indoor sports facilities (sports halls, indoor swimming pools, gymnasiums, etc.) will also reopen, with an adapted sanitary protocol. A 50% capacity will have to be respected and contact sports will only be allowed outdoors. A distance of 2 metres between each athlete must be observed.

□ 5000 people for cultural and sporting events
Another opening impatiently awaited by the French is that of cultural venues and stadiums, which will be able to accommodate 5,000 people from Wednesday onwards on presentation of the Health Pass. Open-air festivals will also be authorised, with a capacity of 5,000 people, again with a Health Pass.

□ Weddings, funerals, museums, markets…
Distance rules will be reduced to 4 square metres in museums, indoor markets and shops. In places of worship or for ceremonies such as weddings, 1 out of 2 spaces can be occupied. The same protocol applies to libraries. Burials are limited to 75 people from Wednesday 9 June. Finally, thermal baths are once again fully authorised without any capacity restriction.

Gatherings of more than 10 people in the public space remain prohibited (except for guided tours).

▫️ INCIDENCE RATES

They are still dropping slowly. Currently 84,38 at the National level and 57,42 in the Aude departement.

▫️ TRAVEL

🔸 04/06: Non-vaccinated people can travel to Iceland again, provided they respect a 5-day quarantine.
🔸 04/06: Direct flights from Europe have resumed to Bolivia.
🔸 04/06 : Occitania and Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur have been removed from the risk zones by Switzerland. It is therefore no longer compulsory to carry out a quarantine from these regions.
🔸 04/06: Colombia no longer requires PCR testing.

🔸 03/06: Bahrain now requires a 10-day quarantine, except for vaccinated persons.
🔸 03/06: International flights begin to resume to Nepal.
🔸 03/06: Armenia no longer requires PCR testing for those who have been vaccinated or have had covid.
🔸 03/06: Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (Dubai) have been removed from the list of countries from which a 10-day quarantine is imposed. Bolivia and Suriname have been added to the list.
🔸 03/06: Turkey no longer requires PCR testing for people who have been vaccinated or have had covid.

🔸 01/06: Sri Lanka has reopened its international airport, but a mandatory 10-day quarantine with police checks is imposed on the return to France from this country.
🔸 01/06: Air services to and from Eritrea from Dubai, Istanbul and Khartoum have resumed with one rotation per week per airline. The principle of a rotation to and from Addis Ababa is under discussion. However, entry to Eritrea remains closed to tourists. At this stage, the only travellers authorised to enter the country are dual nationals and foreigners on business trips.
🔸 01/06: Tunisia has abolished quarantine and PCR testing requirements for vaccinated individuals.
🔸 01/06: Georgia has reopened its land borders.
🔸 01/06: Algeria has reopened its air borders, but with very strict conditions: six weekly flights to five cities: Paris, Marseille, Barcelona, Tunis and Istanbul, PCR test less than 36 hours, 5-day quarantine in a government-approved hotel, PCR test at the end of containment, 5 additional days quarantine in case of a positive test

🔸 31/05: Travel outside Europe: the list of green countries is expected this week. Reciprocity is not a prerequisite for opening France to Americans. It is therefore not yet known whether the French will be able to cross the Atlantic this summer.
🔸 31/05: Vaccinated people are now exempt from testing and quarantine in Switzerland, where restaurant halls have reopened.
🔸 31/05: Saudi Arabia has reopened its borders, but imposes a 7-day quarantine in a government-approved accommodation facility for non-vaccinated people.

28/05: France is no longer on Ireland‘s red list. Passengers coming from France no longer need to quarantine in a hotel. They can do it in a place of their choice and come out of quarantine after 5 days if they pass a negative PCR test.
28/05: Compelling reasons are no longer required to travel to Norway. However, it is still mandatory to spend at least 7 days in a quarantine hotel.

27/05: Flights to Sri Lanka will resume on 1 June with a limit of 75 passengers per flight and 14 days quarantine for all passengers, vaccinated or not.
27/05: Tunisia to abolish quarantine and PCR testing for vaccinated people on 1 June.

26/05: France imposes mandatory isolation for arrivals from the UK.
26/05: From 31 May, vaccinated people will be exempt from quarantine in Switzerland.
26/05: Spain will accept vaccinated tourists from 7 June, without requiring a test.
26/05: Georgia to open its land borders on 1 June.
26/05: Cambodia‘s tourism ministry suggests that the country is preparing to welcome tourists again in the fourth quarter of 2021.
26/05: Mauritius extends the closure of its borders until at least 30 June.

25/05: Mongolia will reopen its borders to vaccinated people on 1 July.
25/05: New Aquitaine and Brittany are no longer considered at risk by Switzerland. People coming from these regions are no longer subject to quarantine or PCR testing.
25/05: Algeria will reopen its borders on June 1st, but with very strict conditions: 3 flights per week from France, PCR test of less than 36 hours, 5-day quarantine in a government-approved hotel, PCR test at the end of containment, 5 additional days of quarantine in case of positive test.
25/05: Germany no longer imposes quarantine on people who present a negative test, proof of vaccination or proof of recovery from covid.

21/05: Spain has announced that it will let in all vaccinated people, regardless of their country of origin, from 7 June. It is not yet clear whether this means that vaccinated people will be able to enter without a PCR test.
21/05: US land borders with Canada and Mexico will remain closed until at least 21 June.
21/05: Panama temporarily closes its land border with Colombia.
21/05: Belize will reopen its land and sea borders with Guatemala and Mexico on 31 May, but with a requirement to stay in a Golden Standard hotel.
21/05: France is now considered a risk country by Zambia, which means an additional test on arrival and a 14-day quarantine.
21/05: The Minister of Transport, Jean-Baptiste Djebbari, hopes for a gradual resumption of international flights throughout the year: “From mid-June, we will try to reopen international flights, from and to North America, Africa, and some countries in South-East Asia.

19/05: As of 9 June, you will no longer need a compelling reason to travel to Guadeloupe, Martinique or Reunion.
19/05: Denmark has reopened its borders.
19/05 : Thailand: Phuket confirms it will reopen to vaccinated foreign tourists on 1 July.

18/05 : Austria to lift quarantine requirement on 19 May.

16/05 : Algeria to gradually reopen its borders from early June.
16/05 : Italy has ended its quarantine for European tourists.
16/05: From Monday 17 May, people coming from France will no longer have to undergo quarantine when arriving in Portugal.

14/05: Vaccinated people no longer need a PCR test to enter Greece.
14/05: People who have been vaccinated or have had covid no longer need a PCR test to enter Germany.
14/05: France’s border reopening strategy has been published:

“Within the European Union, travel facilitated by the health pass To travel within the European Union, it is currently not necessary to justify the reason for travel, but prior testing obligations (-72h) are required.

The government is working with the other Member States on a “green pass” to support the resumption of tourism and facilitate border crossings through common standards.

While the test is already an element of proof used, this “green pass” will enable travellers to show that they have been fully vaccinated at border controls.

For travellers entering France from outside the European Union, tourist flows will be reopened from 9 June depending on the health situation in these countries. France will have a policy of controlling entry to its territory that is proportionate to the health situation in each third country, in accordance with a vision shared with the other Member States of the European Union.

For countries in which the virus is not actively circulating, and in which no variants of concern have been identified (“green countries”), flows may be resumed under much more flexible arrangements.
For countries where the virus is actively circulating but in controlled proportions, and without the spread of variants of concern (“orange countries”), the conditions for entry into France will be more restrictive, particularly for unvaccinated travellers.
Finally, a European emergency mechanism will aim to establish a list of “red countries” for which drastic measures will be implemented, in view of the epidemic circulation in these countries, as well as the presence of variants of concern: strict limitation of people authorised to travel, tests on boarding and arrival, strictly controlled isolation and quarantine measures.

Pending European harmonisation of the criteria for classifying “red countries”, and in order to protect the French without delay, France has already put in place these drastic measures for incoming flows from the following countries: Argentina, Bangladesh, Brazil, Chile, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Qatar, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Turkey, United Arab Emirates (list as of 10 May 2021).

For EU citizens wishing to travel outside the European Union, it is necessary to find out in advance about the entry restrictions and health situation in the destination country.

Travel conditions will depend on the entry restrictions applied by each country.
It is still not advisable to travel to “orange countries” and it is strongly recommended not to travel to “red countries”.

12/05: Reopening of borders: France expects reciprocity from the United States.
12/05 : The suspension of international flights to and from Nepal is extended at least until 31 May.
12/05: Self-tests are now accepted to enter the United States. However, you still need to have spent at least 14 days outside the Schengen area to enter the country.
11/05: Thailand may fully reopen its borders by 1 January 2022.

10/05: Fully vaccinated persons are now exempt from PCR testing to enter Cyprus.
10/05: Morocco has extended the state of health emergency until 10 June.
10/05: Travellers from 12 countries will be able to travel to England without quarantine from 17 May, but France is not one of them.
10/05: French Polynesia will not open to travellers from mainland France without compelling reasons until July.
10/05: Tunisia has put in place a new general lockdown from 9 to 16 May.
07/05: The quarantine requirement for entry into France has been extended to seven additional countries: Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, United Arab Emirates, Turkey and Qatar. For these countries, a PCR test of 36 hours (instead of 72 hours) or a negative PCR test of less than 72 hours accompanied by a negative antigen test of less than 24 hours is now required.
07/05: Australia‘s borders may not fully reopen until mid to late 2022.

▫️ STORK NEWS

A GPS on your back

Last year, 50,000 Internet users logged on every day to follow Espoir, Eliot and Lucky from their hatching to their departure from the nest. What happened to them? We don’t know yet. “That’s why this year, in addition to the rings, we are going to equip four storks with a GPS tag,” adds the ornithologist. A device the size of a matchbox, weighing 30 g, will be attached to their backs, in a sort of small backpack. “It won’t hurt them and won’t bother them. This way we will know where they are migrating to. While the tags are financed by the city, the satellite tracking is financed by a team of German researchers in a partnership. Of the 1,000 storks that Dominique Klein has already ringed, the majority have migrated to Spain. Two wanted to see more countries, reaching Morocco and even Senegal.

▫️ SATIRE