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Reuters

The Spanish government and opposition blamed each other after crowds of mostly maskless youths partied in the streets of Madrid and Barcelona when a state of emergency imposed to curb the pandemic ended at the weekend.
Imposed last October amid an alarming second wave of infections, the state of emergency allowed the temporary suspension of some civil liberties, including a nationwide curfew and local travel bans.
Its expiry, partly because the minority government of Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez would struggle to win a majority in parliament to prolong it, spurred celebrations as well as concerns that such behaviour could lead to another spike in cases.
Crowds of several hundred people breached rules on social distancing and mask-wearing in public, and in some cases police moved in to break them up and fine some individuals.
The images were splashed across Monday’s front pages, sparking much debate.

“The absolute irresponsibility of the government of Sanchez costs lives,” said Pablo Casado, leader of the conservative People’s Party, adding that the opposition wanted a new law that would allow regions to maintain restrictions.
For its part, the government blamed the opposition, including conservative leader of the Madrid region, Isabel Diaz Ayuso, who has just won re-election thanks in part to a relatively relaxed approach to coronavirus restrictions.
Spain becomes first EU nation with 1 million coronavirus cases
“When you spend months and months and months sowing false freedom in the citizenry … that’s what you get,” senior government official Mercedes Gonzalez told Cadena Ser radio, referring to maskless partying in the streets of Madrid.
Now that the state of emergency has expired, each of Spain’s 17 regions must individually ask courts to approve any restrictions they regard as necessary for their territory.
The government said regions had the option of asking for a state of emergency to be reinstated locally if needed.

“No one is giving up on their responsibilities or abandoning regional governments,” Justice Minister Juan Carlos Campo said in an op-ed in El País, hitting back at critics and saying a nationwide state of emergency was not necessary any more.
Health emergency chief Fernando Simon voiced concern that such celebrations could set the country back after more than a year of fighting the disease.
“I hope that everything we have seen in recent days doesn’t translate into a very big new increase in [hospital] occupancy,” Simon told a news conference.
Spain’s coronavirus situation ‘critical’ as it battles new outbreaks
Spain has reported close to 79,000 deaths from Covid-19 and more than 3.5 million cases since the beginning of the pandemic. But the number of cases per 100,000 people over 14 days has fallen to 199, from 523 in mid-January.
Nurse Rafael Fernandez Castillo said on Twitter: “On my way to the hospital, I run into several groups of people without a mask, but with a glass in their hand. I arrive to the ICU and there are no free beds.”
Additional reporting by Agence France-Presse


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Coronavirus pandemic

Coronavirus: blame game in Spain after street parties mark end of curfew

Revellers in Barcelona celebrate the end of a state of emergency over the weekend. Photo: Reuters

People gather in a "macrobotellon" (drinking and dancing session) on a street, as the state of emergency decreed by the Spanish Government to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) gets lifted in Barcelona. Spain, May 10, 2021. REUTERS/Nacho Doce

A couple kiss as they celebrate on a street in the neighborhood of Born, as the state of emergency decreed by the Spanish Government to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) gets lifted in Barcelona, Spain, May 9, 2021. REUTERS/Nacho Doce

5,000 music fans pack Barcelona rock concert after same-day coronavirus tests

People attend a concert of Love of Lesbian in Barcelona. Photo: Reuters

People attend a rock concert in Barcelona on Saturday. Photo: Bloomberg

The Love of Lesbian performs at the Palau Sant Jordi concert hall in Barcelona. Photo: Reuters

Organisers said it was the first commercial event with an audience that big held in Europe during the pandemic. Photo: Bloomberg

Four lions at Spanish zoo test positive for coronavirus

Keepers carried out PCR tests on the lions in the same way as humans are tested. Photo: EPA-EFE

A tiger at the Bronx Zoo in New York tested positive for Covid-19 in April. Photo: Wildlife Conservation Society via AP

Rethinking Barcelona: how the pandemic is reshaping tourism in the Spanish city

Normally thronged with tourists, Barcelona’s squares and landmarks are being reclaimed by locals. Photo: Matilde Gattoni

-ONE TIME USE ONLY--DO NOT CROP--Spain - Barcelona - Children playing football in the square of the Gothic Cathedral usually filled with tourists.[08NOVEMBER2020 FEATURES POST MAGAZINE]CREDIT: Matilde Gattoni

-ONE TIME USE ONLY--DO NOT CROP--Spain - Barcelona - I love being able to walk without being pulled and pushed all the time, or without having tourists taking pictures of me, explains Pilar Subirà, the 56-year-old owner of Cereria Subirà, a historical wax house of the city centre and one of the few establishments that managed to keep a local clientele. It is also a good time to reflect on how Barcelona became dependent on something so volatile, which can disappear from one day to the other, 2020.[08NOVEMBER2020 FEATURES POST MAGAZINE]CREDIT: Matilde Gattoni

-ONE TIME USE ONLY--DO NOT CROP--Spain - Barcelona - Two neighbours living in the Barceloneta talk to eachother from their respective balconies. The neighborhood was constructed during the 18th century for the residents of the Ribera neighborhood who had been displaced by the construction of the Ciutadella of Barcelona, August 18, 2020. [08NOVEMBER2020 FEATURES POST MAGAZINE]CREDIT: Matilde Gattoni

A yoga session in Barcelona’s deserted Gothic Quarter. Photo: Matilde Gattoni

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Street celebrations followed end of a state of emergency
Images of revellers spark health warnings, political quarrel



Party scenes in Madrid, Barcelona and other cities as crowds celebrate the end of a coronavirus state of emergency without masks or social distancing.


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Coronavirus: blame game in Spain after street parties mark end of curfew

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;} Street celebrations followed end of a state of emergency Images of revellers spark health warnings, political quarrel

Street celebrations followed end of a state of emergency

Images of revellers spark health warnings, political quarrel