Once they scrambled to grab what they could from a disintegrating Soviet state, exploiting the political and economic chaos of the post-communist Boris Yeltsin era to secure state enterprises, oilfields and mineral deposits at knockdown prices. But now Russia’s uber-wealthy oligarchs are rushing to shore up a failing state effort to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
 
Rumblings of discontent are growing in Russia over Vladimir Putin’s handling of the pandemic. His approval ratings fell to an historic low for him — down to 59 % last month from 63 % the previous month, according to the independent pollster Levada Center.
 
Even the normally loyal state-owned broadcaster Russia Today ran a report last week warning that the country risks a double-digit unemployment rate and a “return to the pain of the economic miasma of the Yeltsin years [that] would have unpredictable consequences for President Putin.”
 
The Russian leader is facing the biggest test of his presidency, but has passed on most of the responsibility for battling the deadly virus to the country’s regional governors.
 
Tasking regional governors with the main responsibility for tackling the coronavirus reverses the policy Putin has pursued since coming to power, say analysts and Russian media commentators. The Kremlin has over the years curbed the powers of the governors, insisting Russia needs a strong a central government.
 
“It is in the interest of all of us for the economy to return to normal quickly,” Putin said Monday when announcing the end of the non-working period. But a return to normality seems a long way away. On Tuesday his own spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, checked himself into a hospital after testing positive, the fifth senior official to have to do so.FILE – Russian President Vladimir Putin is seen during a teleconference at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence, outside Moscow, May 11, 2020.Putin is being accused of wanting to distance himself from the pandemic, fearing the political fallout, say some analysts. Earlier this week the Russian leader announced the end of a nationwide “non-working period,” leaving to the governors to decide whether to ease lockdowns in their regions or not. His announcement draw derision from many Muscovites, who pointed out that just hours before his announcement, health authorities reported the biggest one-day increase so far in infections.
 
“Despite having created a highly centralized political system, he is not going to be the commander-in-chief of this war. Instead, he would rather force local leaders to take the tough decisions, demanding they both save lives and save the economy, while sniping at them from the sidelines,” according to Mark Galeotti, an analyst at Britain’s Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), and a columnist for the Moscow Times.“He is retaining real power, but handing his boyars the burden of coronavirus,” he adds.  
 FILE – Russian steel magnate Alexei Mordashov speaks during an interview at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, in St. Petersburg, Russia, May 25, 2018.In their turn the governors have found Russia’s oligarchs ready to try to help them to plug the holes left by the state in the struggle to curb the virus.  The embrace of social responsibility by some of Russia’s prominent high-rollers — including steel magnate Alexei Mordashov, who instructed four regional governors to lock down their cities where he has mills, and mining magnate Vladimir Potanin, who has spent more than a hundred million dollars on testing kits, protective masks and ventilators — has surprised some.  
 
When the virus was bearing down on Russia, some independent news outlets reported wealthy Russians were rushing to buy ventilators, adding to shortages. Moscow-based medical pulmonologist Vasiliy Shtabnitskiy, told reporters he was aware of rich Muscovites hoarding ventilators. Although he added that might not do them any good without plenty of supplies of pressured oxygen and other crucial equipment as well as trained staff. But for the super wealthy — especially the mega-rich oligarchs — bespoke medical teams would not be beyond their reach.FILE – Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska is seen outsite his GAZ car production plant in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia, April 16, 2019.But in recent weeks as cases have mounted — Russia has the second fastest rate of new infections globally — and discontent increased with a smattering of protests, the oligarchs started to intervene. Metals magnate Oleg Deripaska is funding three COVID-19 clinics in Siberia. The oligarchs have presented their involvement as being motivated by patriotism, avoiding overt criticism of the state strategy, although Deripaska publicly urged in March the Kremlin to seal shut all borders and to impose a 60-day quarantine on the country.
 
Analysts say oligarchs need to be mindful of the unwritten deal between them and Putin of not getting involved in politics. They have examples to warn them of the danger of breaking the deal, including the case of oil magnate Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who was the world’s 16th richest man when arrested in 2003 on charges of fraud and embezzlement and sentenced to a nine-year prison stretch.   
 
Patriotism or not, some analysts hazard that the oligarchs are moving now to try to fill in the holes for fear that the system Putin presides over — which also protects their wealth — is facing serious risks.  
 
The Russian president has had to put on hold his plans to rewrite the Russian constitution, which would allow him another 12 years in office, “while the Kremlin tries to deal with both the virus and a new economic crisis,” says Tatiana Stanovaya, an analyst with the Carnegie Moscow Center, a think tank. “These twin challenges represent the biggest shock the Putin regime has ever faced and are likely to feed popular dissatisfaction,” she adds.  
 
The economic fallout is mounting. A quarter of working-age Russians say they have lost their jobs or expect they will soon. Six out of ten Russians have no savings. There have been isolated protests and analysts say there’s a real prospect of much wider unrest, once the pandemic starts to accelerate beyond Moscow and St. Petersburg, where hospitals and local health services have been neglected for years.  FILE – Medical personnel wearing protective gear move what appears to be a bag containing a human body, outside a hospital for coronavirus patients, on the outskirts of Moscow, Russia May 12, 2020.On Monday, the Kremlin appeared to understand the danger. Putin made his fifth address to the nation since the coronavirus outbreak, announcing new measures for supporting ordinary Russians as well as small businesses. Among the measures — bonuses for doctors and social workers, benefits for families with children, preferential credit terms for company owners and tax exemptions for small businesses. There had been mounting public criticism of the neglect of small business with preferential treatment going to much bigger concerns previously.
 
The measures received praise from economists. “For the first time during the crisis we are seeing that the size of payments is at least somewhat in line with what economists wrote about, and what opposition leaders suggested,” Konstantin Sonin, a professor at the University of Chicago and Russia’s Higher School of Economics, told Meduza, an independent news site.
 
Evsey Gurvich, an economist, agrees, but told Meduza it would have been better “if there had been a large-scale, anti-crisis program announced at the very beginning of the crisis — this would have helped many to decide not to close their businesses.”
 
Whether the new measures will dampen political frustration is unclear. For working-class Russians the new payments will cover their grocery costs for one month.
 
And few believe the coronavirus death toll the Kremlin has been publishing. In Moscow alone, the country’s coronavirus hotspot where 52 % of the officially registered confirmed cases have occurred, analysts as well as the city’s mayor say coronavirus-related cases and fatalities are being seriously under-reported.  
 
Russia confirmed 9,974 new coronavirus infections Thursday, bringing the country’s official tally of cases to 252,245. The total nationwide death toll is put at 2,305 — a mortality rate much lower than other European countries with better reserved and rated health-care systems. The Kremlin says Russia was able to learn lessons from the experiences of western Europe.
 
Trust in the mortality rate officially given is low. Russia’s first recorded virus-related fatality — an elderly woman who died on March 19 — was reclassified as having died from a blood clot.
 
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In a world full of bad news on coronavirus, the good deeds of quiet people often go unnoticed. In a report narrated by Jonathan Spier, Ricardo Marquina and Sergey Smolyakov bring us the story of an octogenarian in St. Petersburg, Russia, who – despite being in the highest-risk group – goes out every day to help those who need it most. 
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Spain’s health ministry reported Thursday the country’s daily coronavirus death toll rose above 200 for the first time in five days, with 217 fatalities reported since Wednesday.Spain’s death toll currently stands at more than 27,100, according to the Johns Hopkins University’s COVID-19 dashboard. COVID-19 is the illness caused by the virus.At news briefing in Madrid, the health ministry’s director of emergency coordination, Fernando Simón, said the higher number of deaths does not necessarily reflect a change in the situation in Spain. Rather, these were patients who were already hospitalized, likely in intensive care. He said it would take about a week to assess if this reflects a trend of any kind.Simon also said there were 506 new confirmed COVID cases Thursday, a slight increase (0.22 percent) that raises the number of cases to almost 230,000.More than half of the new cases were in Catalonia, where 195 were recorded. Eighty-eight cases were reported in Madrid.The two regions are not yet part of the national plan to ease lockdown restrictions due to their high infection rates.Simon also said that it was too soon to see an impact of the easing of the measures.
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The European Medicines Agency predicted that there could be licensed drugs to treat the new coronavirus in the next few months and that a vaccine might even be approved in early 2021, in a “best-case scenario.”
Dr. Marco Cavaleri, who heads the European regulator’s vaccines department, told a media briefing on Thursday that approving medicines to treat COVID-19 might be possible “before the summer,” citing ongoing clinical trials. Recent early results for the drug remdesivir suggested it could help patients recover from the coronavirus faster, although longer-term data is still needed to confirm any benefit.  
Although it typically takes years to develop a vaccine, Cavaleri said that if some of the shots already being tested prove to be effective, they could be licensed as early as the beginning of next year.  
Cavaleri cautioned, however, that many experimental vaccines never make it to the end and that there are often delays.  
“But we can see the possibility that if everything goes as planned, vaccines could be approved a year from now,” he said.  Sorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
download this video to view it offline. Embed” />CopyMore than 140 heads of states and health experts, including South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan and Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz issued an appeal Thursday calling on all countries to unite behind a “people’s vaccine” against COVID-19, to ensure any effective treatments and vaccines be available globally to anyone who needs them, for free.
At the moment, there are about a dozen vaccine candidates being tested in China, Britain, Germany and the U.S. The World Health Organization has estimated it could take about 12 to 18 months for an effective vaccine to be found.  
While some experts have proposed dropping the requirement for large-scale advanced clinical trials altogether, Cavaleri said that wasn’t currently being considered.  
“Our current thinking is all vaccines under development should undergo large phase 3 trials to establish what is the level of protection,” he said.  
But he acknowledged that could change if the situation worsened.  
“Things may evolve as the pandemic will evolve and we will see if we need to do something else,” Cavaleri said.
Some officials have warned that a vaccine might never be found; previous attempts to develop a vaccine against related coronaviruses like SARS and MERS have all failed. But Cavleri was optimistic an immunization against COVID-19 would eventually be discovered, as there are various technologies being tried globally.  
“I think it’s a bit early to say, but we have good reason to be sufficiently optimistic that at the end of the day, some vaccines will make it,” he said.
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Peruvian President Martin Vizcarra said the rate of coronavirus cases is peaking and will begin a gradual decline as the country moves into the “final stage” of a lockdown which began more than two months ago.Vizcarra said until the lockdown ends on May 24, citizens will remain under a nightly curfew and social distancing will be enforced at markets, other businesses and on public transportation.Vizcarra said some markets in Lima temporarily closed after more than half the merchants in the capital city tested positive for coronavirus.Peru has the second-highest rate of coronavirus cases in Latin America, with Wednesday’s count reaching 76,306.Peru’s health ministry said 2,169 people have died from the virus.Peru’s all-important mining, fishing and construction industries have already begun a measured restart of operations. 
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German Chancellor Angela Merkel says she has “hard evidence” that Russia hacked the website of Germany’s parliament in 2015 and allegedly stole documents from her own parliamentary office. German news reports said prosecutors had issued an arrest warrant for a suspected member of the Russian military intelligence agency GRU. “I can say honestly that this pains me,” Merkel said during a question-and-answer session with lawmakers Wednesday. “On the one hand, I work every day for a better relationship with Russia, and when you see on the other hand that there is such hard evidence that Russian forces are involved in acting this way, this is an area of tension.” Merkel said she was “very glad” investigators had identified someone she called a “concrete” suspect. When asked about what the Russians were looking for, Merkel said she got “the impression that they picked up relatively indiscriminately what they could get.” It was unclear what Russian was allegedly trying to find. German authorities would categorize it only as intelligence data on German organizations and institutions.Merkel said that the charges didn’t make efforts to keep good relations with Russia easier and that Germany had the right to take measures against Russia or anyone who carried out such spying.  Russia has consistently denied conducting cyberattacks on Germany, the United States or any other Western nation. A Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman has said the only time Russia broke into the German parliament was in 1945.  
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Mexico’s death toll from tainted alcohol has soared to at least 70 in the past two weeks, with dozens of deaths occurring since Sunday.Authorities said at least 40 people died on Mother’s Day after drinking tainted alcohol in Puebla and Morelos.Officials said at least 20 victims died in Chiconcuautla, Puebla, after consuming a local drink called Refino, which may have been tainted with methanol.Puebla State Interior Secretary David Méndez said the victims were among dozens of people attending a funeral last weekend.The mayor’s office in Puebla declared a health emergency and people are being urged not to drink alcohol, and if they do and require medical attention, the mayor is promising a full investigation.Meanwhile, 15 other people died in two jurisdictions in Morelose state, south of the capital, Mexico City, after drinking an unnamed alcohol that was later confiscated by authorities.Late last month, 28 victims died In Jalisco state after drinking El Chorrito, cane alcohol tainted with methanol.Authorities have not said publicly whether the surge in Mexico’s tainted alcohol deaths is related to the coronavirus restrictions, which included the closing of many alcohol retailers. 
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As people around the world wonder when the coronavirus might go away, experts say: Maybe never.The World Health Organization warned Wednesday that the new virus, which has infected 4.3 million people worldwide, may become endemic, just like the HIV virus, and that people may have to learn to live with it.It could stay embedded in communities even if a vaccine is found, said WHO emergencies director Mike Ryan during a virtual news conference from Geneva.”HIV has not gone away, but we have come to terms with the virus,” he said.About 100 organizations worldwide are working on developing a coronavirus vaccine. Even if they find one that works, containing the virus will take a “massive effort,” the WHO official said.Meanwhile, the California-based Gilead drug company has reached agreements with several companies to make its antiviral drug Veklury, the brand name of remdesivir, available in 127 countries to help treat COVID-19.After weeks or months under lockdown, people around the world are eager to return to their normal lives, but the pandemic is showing no signs of going away, at least for now. Some countries, like New Zealand and Thailand, reported no new cases Wednesday, and Australia came close. Once hardest hit, Italy and Spain have both slashed the number of new cases.An employee cleans the floor at Riverside Market in Christchurch on May 14, 2020. New Zealand will phase out its coronavirus lockdown over the next 10 days after successfully containing the virus.But Russia has reported more than 10,000 new infections per day for the past 11 days. It has the second-highest number of COVID-19 cases after the United States. The country’s prime minister and the president’s spokesman are being treated for COVID-19. There are fears the situation may worsen because the country’s official nonworking period ended Tuesday.Some countries that seem to have halted the spread, like Germany and South Korea, have seen a resurgence of cases. A spike of new infections in Lebanon prompted the government to reimpose a four-day lockdown Wednesday after it began gradually lifting restrictions earlier this month.Governments are struggling between the need to restart their economies and the necessity to contain the virus. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has instructed local governments to reinstate shutdowns if they record more than 50 new cases per 100,000 residents. Russian President Vladimir Putin left to local governors to decide whether to extend shutdowns or reinstate the ones that have been lifted.In the United States, the government’s top virology expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, warned the public and leaders of the dangers of reopening too soon. Fauci told a Senate committee Tuesday that premature lifting of restrictions could lead to an outbreak that could be impossible to control.But U.S. President Donald Trump said Wednesday that people want the country reopened, including businesses and schools.“We have to open our country. Now, we want to do it safely, but we also want to do it as quickly as possible. We can’t keep going on like this,” Trump said.The mayor of Washington, D.C., Muriel Bowser, extended the U.S. capital’s stay-at-home order, which was to expire Friday, until June 8. She said she wanted to see a steady decline of new cases over two weeks before lifting restrictions. Governors of neighboring states Virginia and Maryland are planning to ease their lockdowns in places where the spread of the virus has halted.Sheila Kelly, center, owner of Powell’s Steamer Co. & Pub, stands behind makeshift barriers as she helps patrons at her restaurant in the El Dorado County town of Placerville, Calif., May 13, 2020.Los Angeles County, California, the most populous county in the U.S., with 10 million residents, is expected to announce a three-month extension of its lockdown.The largest four-year public university system in the U.S., California State University, announced the cancellation of in-person classes in the fall at its 23 campuses, the first large U.S. university to do so. Almost all instruction will be moved online, Chancellor Timothy White said in a statement.Elsewhere in the world, Saudi Arabia announced Wednesday that it would go into complete lockdown for the end of the holy month of Ramadan after a sharp rise in new cases. The Interior Ministry said the measure would be in effect from May 23 through May 27.Worldwide, there were about 4.3 million confirmed infections and more than 297,000 deaths late Wednesday evening EDT, according to Johns Hopkins University statistics. The United States was leading the world in the number of infections, with close to 1.4 million, and the number of coronavirus-related deaths, over 84,000. 
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More than 40 people have been detained as alleged participants in last week’s unsuccessful attempt to capture Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, as security forces continue to round up suspects.Three Venezuelan men were captured Monday in Carayaca, 35 miles west of Caracas. Venezuela’s Bolivarian National Guard said in a social media post that the men were “terrorists who entered the country intending to provoke violence.”Late Sunday, Venezuelan army chief Remigio Ceballos tweeted to announce that government forces had arrested eight other “enemies of the fatherland” allegedly tied to the foiled raid.ALERTA! Pueblo de Venezuela la Patria se crece su FANB sigue garantizando la Seguridad de la Nación, hemos capturado hoy a esta hora 8 terroristas mercenarios, Felicitaciones REDI Capital y Central seguimos escudriñando y capturando a los enemigos de la Patria!!! pic.twitter.com/6c1NadqwNT— A/J REMIGIO CEBALLOS (@CeballosIchaso) May 11, 2020Maduro’s forces reportedly killed eight men during the May 3 raid and captured more than 20 others, including Americans Airon Berry and Luke Denman, both former members of the U.S. special forces. Berry and Denman are being held in Venezuela on charges of terrorism, arms trafficking and conspiracy.Maduro announced last week that his government was working toward the extradition from the U.S. of Jordan Goudreau, the operator of a Florida-based security contracting company implicated in the botched mission, to stand trial for his alleged role in the raid attempt.Venezuelan authorities say that the operatives traveled by speedboat from Colombia to Venezuela and that Venezuelan forces foiled the attack, having been warned about it ahead of time.
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The European Union Wednesday announced its plan to help European citizens salvage their summer vacations and resurrect Europe’s damaged tourism industry after months of coronavirus lockdowns.At a Brussels news conference, EU commissioners stressed safety as they announced their gradual, careful steps to restart travel and tourism among European countries.The commissioner’s over-arching advice is that EU countries with similar rates of coronavirus infections and comparably strong health care systems should begin lifting border measures between each other.Earlier Wednesday, Germany announced, after consultations with its neighbors, the opening of its borders with France, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Austria.  Tourists from outside Europe cannot enter Germany until at least June 15.The EU commissioners also announced guidelines for reimbursing consumers with vouchers for cancelled flights or other vacation plans that can be used for future travel plans. The vouchers, they said, would be preferable to cash reimbursements as they would encourage travel and not create a financial burden on cash-strapped airlines and travel companies.  Even with easing restrictions, social distancing rules would still apply, and Brussels is recommending that robust disease monitoring measures are put in place – including good testing capacity and contact tracing – so that people have the confidence to return to hotels and camping sites abroad. 
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Spain – one of the nations hardest hit by the pandemic – is seeing its daily coronavirus death rate drop this week.  That is allowing a limited number of businesses to reopen after weeks of paralysis. Although business owners are happy to be open again, they continue to see their losses mount – and normality seems distant. In a report narrated by Jonathan Spier, Alfonso Beato has the story from Barcelona
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Germany’s interior minister said Wednesday the country wants to end some COVID-19 checks at land borders by the middle of next month.Interior Minister Horst Seehofer told reporters Germany had set the goal of free travel in Europe by mid-June and would open borders with France, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Austria by Saturday.Seehofer said the plans are contingent on a continued favorable rate of COVID-19 infection.Seehofer said agreements on loosening the measures had been reached in bilateral talks with neighboring nations this week.He said that travel from non-EU countries such as the United States and Russia would remain restricted until at least June 15.German Chancellor Angela Merkel discussed the border openings before the German parliament Wednesday. She, like Seehofer, warned of complacency regarding the virus, saying it would be sad if Germans had to return to the restraints of full COVID-19 restrictions if the virus flairs up again. 
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New Zealand and Thailand each reported no new coronavirus cases Wednesday as the governments prepared to further ease lockdown restrictions. New Zealand has now had four such days during the past two weeks, showing continued success that followed a month of strict stay-at-home orders. Thursday brings the latest step back to normalcy there with most stores and restaurants allowed to open again with social distancing rules in place. “The sense of anticipation is both palpable and understandable,” Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield said. Thailand reached the zero daily cases milestone for the first time since early March.  The government is urging people to continue wearing masks if they go out in public and will meet Friday to decide on additional easing measures such as allowing shopping malls to reopen. In another sign of progress, Austria announced Wednesday its border with Germany would fully reopen on June 15 after talks between leaders of the two countries. Mexico’s General Health Council has classified the construction, mining and automobile manufacturing industries as “essential activities,” meaning they will be allowed to operate while other businesses remain under lockdown restrictions.A medical worker from the COVID-19 triage carries paperwork at the Mexico General Hospital, in Mexico City, Tuesday, May 12, 2020.The move came ahead of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s expected announcement Wednesday of his plan for gradually resuming economic activity in Mexico.  The country’s health ministry has reported 38,000 confirmed cases and more than 3,900 deaths. While many countries, especially in Europe, are starting to allow businesses to reopen, health officials remain cautious about the risk for moving too quickly and allowing a resurgence of infections. The top U.S. infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, told a Senate committee he is concerned that if states skip stages such as waiting for a two-week decline in confirmed cases before opening up, “we will start to see little spikes that might turn into outbreaks.” “If you think that we have it completely under control, we don’t,” Fauci told lawmakers.  “If you look at the dynamics of the outbreak, we are seeing a diminution of hospitalizations and infections in some places, such as in New York City, which has plateaued and starting to come down, New Orleans. But in other parts of the country, we are seeing spikes.” The United States has the most confirmed cases in the world, followed by Russia, which has seen a spike in cases, including reporting more than 10,000 new cases again Wednesday. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov announced Tuesday that he has contracted the virus. Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin had to relinquish his duties two weeks ago after being diagnosed with COVID-19.  President Vladimir Putin is conducting all his communication via video links from his official retreat outside Moscow.  Worldwide, there are about 4.3 million confirmed cases and 292,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University statistics. 
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A videotape has emerged showing Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro telling his Cabinet that he wanted to personally choose the head of the federal police office in Rio de Janeiro to shield his family from investigation. The videotape was viewed Tuesday by investigators looking into accusations made by former Justice Minister Sergio Moro that the president is trying to interfere in ongoing police investigations.    Sources say Bolsonaro told his Cabinet in the videotape that he wanted to change the leadership of the federal police office because his family is being persecuted. But hours after the videotape was viewed, the president said that he was instead expressing concern about his family’s safety. Bolsonaro also said there has never been any investigation of his family by the federal police, and that the videotape should have been destroyed.  Rio de Janeiro is Bolsonaro’s hometown and where his two sons are prominent politicians:  Flavio, a senator, and Carlos, a Rio city councilman.  Both sons are under investigation for various allegations by local prosecutors and police.   Brazil’s Supreme Court ordered an investigation into Moro’s accusations after Moro, a popular anti-corruption crusader, abruptly resigned from Bolsonaro’s cabinet last month after the president fired the federal police chief.  The growing scandal is likely to further damage Bolsonaro’s already sinking approval ratings over his stubborn approach to the coronavirus pandemic, which has soared to over 177,000 confirmed cases, including 12,400 fatalities.  The health ministry reported 881 fatalities over a 24 hour period on Tuesday, its deadliest day since the start of the outbreak. 
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Italy plans to reopen bars and restaurants after suffering one of the worst coronavirus outbreaks Europe has seen so far.  Getting around the country remains a concern, as social distancing guidelines all but forbid using mass transit.  VOA’s Arash Arabasadi reports that Italy’s capital built a special bike lane to keep commuters safe.
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Turkey is starting to ease COVID-19 restrictions, as the government claims success in containing the coronavirus. While infection and death rates are falling, concerns remain, the move may be premature, driven more by economic rather than health considerations. COVID-19 is the disease caused by the coronavirus.”May God gives us good business and protect us from corona,” said Gul Ali Simsek as he opened his barbershop in Istanbul’s Moda district.Simsek’s business has been in lockdown since March, as part of a nationwide shutdown of barbers, cafes, bars, restaurants and numerous other establishments.But the lockdown was lifted on hairdressers and barbers, as the government lifted some COVID-19 controls.  “I am opening the shop with such excitement as if it is the first time. Because I missed it,” said Simsek, holding back tears. “I missed the people. I am so used to here,” gesturing to his barbershop.Even though it was seven in the morning, Simsek didn’t have to wait long for his regular customers.”Brother Ali is my barber for almost 40 years. Since I was a child, he has cut my hair,” said Yakup, who has a tailor shop nearby.Tailor Yakup, a customer of barber Gul Ali Simsek for forty years, welcomes the reopening but worries of a second lockdown if there are more infections. (D. Jones)”We waited for this day too long,” said Yakup, who asked that his last name not be used. “I hope it would be good for our nation, of course. With the condition that we all abide by the rules.”Simsek explains he has disinfected his shop and is wearing a mask and gloves following safety regulations issued by Turkey’s National Barber Association.  Both men say they have suffered substantial economic losses, while struggling to live with the uncertainty of when restrictions will end.On Monday, shopping malls opened for the first time since March. Customers entering some malls had their temperatures taken as part of efforts to contain the coronavirus.  Critics are questioning the opening of the malls, pointing out the health risks of confined places with large numbers of people.President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, pointing to declining COVID-19 infection and death rates, said the time is right to ease controls. On Sunday, people over the age of 65 were allowed out of their homes for four hours a day after a nearly two-month lockdown.Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, listens during a teleconference with his cabinet in Istanbul, May 11, 2020.”Like all the countries in the world, they (the Turkish government) are caught between a rock and a hard place,” said international relations expert Soli Ozel of Istanbul’s Kadir Has University.   “How much should we engineer our policies that the health issues don’t get out of hand? Second, what do we do to avoid the devastation of the economy, which was already very weak?” he asked.Ozel says Turkey, through a combination of factors, including having Europe’s youngest population, appears less vulnerable to infection. He says the country has large numbers of intensive care facilities, along with well-trained doctors and is among the most successful in Europe in containing the virus.”Other than some major initial errors, the government has rather rapidly reacted to the threat,” said Ozel.”Turkey has done well, and in terms of the number of deaths per million inhabitants, it has done even better than Germany, which is the best western European country.”The Johns Hopkins University’s coronavirus dashboard says Turkey currently has close to 140,000 infections and 3,841 deaths. On Monday, Turkey’s Health Ministry reported 1,114 new COVID-19 cases, 55 deaths and 3,089 people recovering.  The political opposition accuses the government of underreporting, a charge it denies. Observers point out similar claims have been made against many European countries.But fears of rising complacency are starting to be voiced within the government. Photographs Friday of Istanbul’s famous Istiklal shopping street crowded with people, many unmasked, alarmed Health Minister Fahrettin Koca.  Photos of Istanbul’s famous Istiklal shopping street Friday crowded with people, many unmasked, alarmed Health Minister Fahrettin Koca, warning of dangerous complacency. (D. Jones)”This is not a very good picture. It is too early for so many people to appear in a single photo frame. Let’s try to stay at home. If we go out, let’s wear face masks and adhere to social distancing rules,” Koca wrote on Twitter.Koca’s reputation has surged during the epidemic, with one poll naming him the country’s most popular politician.  Critics are warning the government’s easing of restrictions threatens to accelerate complacency within the population, risking a surge in infections. On Wednesday, people under 20 (those working are exempt) will be allowed out of their homes for four hours, for the first time since March.The government announced Monday the lockdown will end starting May 27 for people under 20 and over 65.Erdogan is voicing caution. “We have seen the examples in the world of how complacency could lead to big catastrophes,” he said Tuesday.The Turkish president announced a new nationwide lockdown from May 16 to 19 to coincide with a public holiday.Erdogan’s balancing act between health and economic concerns comes amid mounting criticism that not enough is being done to alleviate the financial fallout of the pandemic.”If Erdogan delivered 5,000 lira ($700) to every person at the beginning of the epidemic to help people get through, Erdogan would have been a national hero. But he didn’t. There is a lot of economic pain,” said analyst Atilla Yesilada of consulting group Global Source Partners.”The government’s allocation resources to the working population really wasn’t sufficient,” Ozel said. “It is also debatable whether small- and medium-size enterprises received enough support from the government. One of the most staunch supporters of the government is shopkeepers, and they have been hit very hard.”But even business owners like barber Simsek say the hope instilled by returning to work is tempered by fear that Turkey is taking a gamble.  “Of course, there is fear. There is fear. You can’t be without fear because this is not a matter of a joke. We have to be scared,” he said, while applying the finishing touches to the haircut for friend and life-long customer Yakup.Looking at his haircut, Yakup concurs.”The future is uncertain; the limitations can be introduced again. But we are putting up our own fight as much as we can. There is not much more we can do.”
 
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In an effort to try to prevent importing new cases of the coronavirus, Spain is requiring people arriving from abroad to go into quarantine for two weeks. The country has started to emerge from a seven-week, strict lockdown after an explosion of cases made it one of the world’s COVID-19 hot spots. A health ministry order published Tuesday said the quarantine rules will go into effect on Friday and will apply both to visitors from other countries as well as Spanish citizens who are returning home. People will be allowed only to go grocery shopping or to seek medical care during the 14-day period. China instituted a similar strategy as it saw its locally transmitted cases sharply decline and authorities began easing lockdown restrictions. Governments all over the world are currently weighing their strategies and whether it is time to impose new measures to stop the spread of the virus or allow people to resume parts of normal life. In Singapore, Tuesday brought a new phase in reopening with people allowed to get a haircut, visit bakeries or go to laundromats.   India is resuming some train service Tuesday for the first time since March.  Passengers must pass temperature checks and adhere to social distancing guidelines. South Korean authorities are worried about a resurgence of cases and are working to track down people who recently visited nightclubs in Seoul where a cluster of new infections has emerged.Quarantine workers spray disinfectants at night spots of Itaewon neighborhood, following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Seoul, South Korea, May 11, 2020.Officials said Tuesday teams are using phone and credit card data to try to track down about 2,000 more people so they can be tested. So far, there are more than 100 confirmed cases linked to nightclubs. So-called contact tracing has been a major element as governments try to stop the spread of the coronavirus by finding who may have been close enough to someone who has tested positive. Those people can then be tested themselves, and isolated if necessary. Testing is a big focus in the United States, with the Trump administration saying about 9 million people have been tested and that the capacity for more tests is increasing. A senior administration official told reporters that a new antigen test will speed up the testing process further because it looks only for the presence of the viral protein in the nose, unlike the more complicated and time-consuming nucleic acid tests.     “The machines for these tests — there are already 20,000 of them out in the United States because they’re a commonly used platform for things like flu testing and strep throat,” the official said.  The World Health Organization is advising nations to ensure that the pandemic is under control before reopening. WHO’s Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Monday that countries should also have surveillance systems in place to be able to detect and manage any resurgence of cases and ensure that their health systems can cope with a possible resurgence after reopening.   He also said there are about seven or eight of what he called “top” vaccine candidates among the many currently being developed around the world.  He said that while several months ago experts expected the process of getting a vaccine ready for public use would take 12 to 18 months, there are efforts to accelerate that process with the support of $8 billion in pledges made last week.   Worldwide, the number of confirmed coronavirus cases is about 4.2 million. The global death tally is more than 286,000, according to Johns Hopkins University statistics. 
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In an effort to try to prevent importing new cases of the coronavirus, Spain is requiring people arriving from abroad to go into quarantine for two weeks. The country has started to emerge from a seven-week, strict lockdown after an explosion of cases made it one of the world’s COVID-19 hot spots. A health ministry order published Tuesday said the quarantine rules will go into effect on Friday and will apply both to visitors from other countries as well as Spanish citizens who are returning home. People will be allowed only to go grocery shopping or to seek medical care during the 14-day period. China instituted a similar strategy as it saw its locally transmitted cases sharply decline and authorities began easing lockdown restrictions. Governments all over the world are currently weighing their strategies and whether it is time to impose new measures to stop the spread of the virus or allow people to resume parts of normal life. In Singapore, Tuesday brought a new phase in reopening with people allowed to get a haircut, visit bakeries or go to laundromats.   India is resuming some train service Tuesday for the first time since March.  Passengers must pass temperature checks and adhere to social distancing guidelines. South Korean authorities are worried about a resurgence of cases and are working to track down people who recently visited nightclubs in Seoul where a cluster of new infections has emerged.Quarantine workers spray disinfectants at night spots of Itaewon neighborhood, following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Seoul, South Korea, May 11, 2020.Officials said Tuesday teams are using phone and credit card data to try to track down about 2,000 more people so they can be tested. So far, there are more than 100 confirmed cases linked to nightclubs. So-called contact tracing has been a major element as governments try to stop the spread of the coronavirus by finding who may have been close enough to someone who has tested positive. Those people can then be tested themselves, and isolated if necessary. Testing is a big focus in the United States, with the Trump administration saying about 9 million people have been tested and that the capacity for more tests is increasing. A senior administration official told reporters that a new antigen test will speed up the testing process further because it looks only for the presence of the viral protein in the nose, unlike the more complicated and time-consuming nucleic acid tests.     “The machines for these tests — there are already 20,000 of them out in the United States because they’re a commonly used platform for things like flu testing and strep throat,” the official said.  The World Health Organization is advising nations to ensure that the pandemic is under control before reopening. WHO’s Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Monday that countries should also have surveillance systems in place to be able to detect and manage any resurgence of cases and ensure that their health systems can cope with a possible resurgence after reopening.   He also said there are about seven or eight of what he called “top” vaccine candidates among the many currently being developed around the world.  He said that while several months ago experts expected the process of getting a vaccine ready for public use would take 12 to 18 months, there are efforts to accelerate that process with the support of $8 billion in pledges made last week.   Worldwide, the number of confirmed coronavirus cases is about 4.2 million. The global death tally is more than 286,000, according to Johns Hopkins University statistics. 
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Jamaica will begin relaxing its COVID-19 restrictions this week with the reopening of churches for a two-week trial period. Prime Minister Andrew Holness announced during a press briefing Monday that beginning May 16 services may resume based on an agreement with the religious community that face masks are worn and social distancing is maintained inside the church. The prime minster also said no more than 10 people can be gathered outside places of worship while each person stays six-feet apart.    The government will also allow community bars to reopen on May 19 while authorities review how the managers are conducting operations. Under the criteria for bars reopening, social and physical distancing must be maintained and a limit of five people, including the bartender, are to be in the bar at any given time.  Prime Minister Holness said it is crucial that Jamaicans do their best to maintain the integrity of the relaxed restrictions to help move the nation’s economy back to its capacity.  Jamaica has confirmed 502 coronavirus cases and nine deaths. 
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The Brazilian city of Niteroi, adjacent to Rio de Janeiro, is increasing its restrictive measures to avoid the spread of the coronavirus.Authorities in Niteroi are now restricting people from other jurisdictions to enter its region.People in healthcare and other jobs classified as essential will be the only ones allowed to enter the city without restrictions.Authorities says local government workers and policemen are checking documents of people entering the city and taking their temperature.People in Niteroi, a city of 500-thousand, must stay at home unless traveling for something that is essential.Niteroi’s tightening of restrictions comes just as President Jair Bolsonaro deemed gyms and hair salons as essential services that can stay open through the new coronavirus outbreak, although the country is still seeing an increase in new cases and deaths.Niteroi has registered 756 of the 17,000 confirmed cases of the new coronavirus in the state of Rio de Janeiro, and 43 deaths.Brazil has 168,331 confirmed cases of the virus and 11,519 deaths.
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The United States, Britain and Russia are preparing to return their people to work despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday the country is conducting about 300,000 coronavirus tests a day and will soon pass a total of 10 million tests conducted, which he said was more than any other country.   A senior administration official told reporters that a new antigen test, approved by a company called Quidel, will speed up the testing process further because this test looks only for the presence of the viral protein in the nose, unlike the more complicated and time-consuming nucleic acid tests.  “The machines for these tests — there are already 20,000 of them out in the United States because they’re a commonly used platform for things like flu testing and strep throat,” the official said. The administration expects about 9 million new tests to be available every month.Materials for COVD-19 testing from Abbott Laboratories, U.S. Cotton, and Puritan are displayed as President Donald Trump speaks about the coronavirus during a press briefing in the Rose Garden of the White House, May 11, 2020.The White House shifted focus from reopening the country to testing after two West Wing aides tested positive for the coronavirus. Trump wants to reopen the country as soon as possible to halt the growing unemployment, which has already reached historic proportions, with more than 30 million people losing their jobs since mid-March. Some state governors have made testing one of the conditions for returning people to work. The United States tops the world with about 1,350,000 confirmed COVID cases and more than 80,000 coronavirus-related deaths. But many states are reopening or planning to do so, including the worst-hit New York and New Jersey. Britain, which ranks third in the world in the number of infections — close to 225,000 — and second in the number of deaths — more than 32,000 — also is taking steps to return people to work, even though infected people are still dying in thousands by day. Labor unions and leaders of the independent regions of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales are balking at the three-step plan that Prime Minister Boris Johnson unveiled Sunday. Johnson spent Monday defending what he called his “baby-steps” approach to reopening the country, and he answered questions from the media and the public.  Russian President Vladimir Putin confirmed that the non-working period ends May 12 even though the country reported 11,656 new cases over the past 24 hours, a record number so far. In a televised address Monday, Putin told the nation that “it is in the interest of all of us for the economy to return to normal quickly.” Russian President Vladimir Putin, addresses the nation via video conference at the Novo-Ogaryovo residence outside Moscow, Russia, May 11, 2020.Russia reported a total of more than 221,000 COVID cases on Monday and 2,009 coronavirus deaths. Putin said the ultimate decision on reopening remains with local governors, who he said can reinstate shutdowns if necessary. He said the doctors will have a final say. Putin said all sectors should return to work starting with construction, agriculture and energy.   Worldwide, many countries have relaxed COVID restrictions with mixed results. New Zealand is set to further ease measures Thursday, after no new cases emerged during the first phase of reopening. Its people are now allowed to go to restaurants, movie theaters and malls. But South Korea, Germany and China have seen a resurgence of cases after easing lockdowns. The World Health Organization is advising nations to ensure that the epidemic is under control before reopening. WHO’s Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Monday that countries should also have surveillance systems in place to be able to detect and manage any resurgence of cases and ensure that their health systems can cope with a possible resurgence after reopening.  Worldwide, the number of confirmed coronavirus cases is more than 4.2 million. The global death tally is more than 285,000, according to Johns Hopkins University statistics. 
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British Prime Minister Boris Johnson sought to assure the public Monday that the government is taking “baby steps” toward leading the country out of the lockdown prompted by the coronavirus pandemic. Johnson answered the public and media questions during a daily briefing after critics called his new approach to COVID-19 vague and potentially dangerous. The United Kingdom has nearly 225,000 confirmed cases and 32,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University data. Three-step roadmapEarlier Monday, Johnson presented his three-step roadmap out of the lockdown to the House of Commons, after unveiling it to the public on Sunday. He said the government is changing the message from “Stay at Home” to “Stay Alert.” According to his plan, people who cannot work from home, such as workers in construction and manufacturing, should be encouraged to go to work. He also announced more freedom for outdoor recreation. Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson speaks during a daily news conference to update on the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, at 10 Downing Street in London, Britain, May 11, 2020.The other steps would follow “if and only if” the first phase proves to be successful, the prime minister vowed. Step two, potentially in June, and step three in July would include gradual reopening of shops, some encounters between students and teachers and possibly the reopening of some of the hospitality industry “if the numbers allow it,” he said. Regional leaders of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales said Johnson’s plan could endanger people’s lives and kept their shutdowns mostly in place for the time being. They generally ruled out reopening the primary and secondary schools in June or July.  Britain’s opposition Labor Party leader, Keir Starmer, said the government’s plan leaves “questions that need answering.” ‘Stay Alert’ message defendedJohnson, who is the only world’s leader to have been hospitalized for COVID-19, defended his “Stay Alert” message, saying it still requires most people to stay at home. Those who have to leave home for work are encouraged to walk, drive or ride a bike rather than use public transport, which is now limiting the number of passengers.  Seats display social distancing signs at Victoria Station, London, May 11, 2020, as the country continues in lockdown to help stop the spread of coronavirus.Workplaces will receive detailed new COVID-19 safety guidelines by the end of the week, he said. Judging by the previous guidelines, new measures could include a ban on sharing a workspace between different shifts and obligatory wearing of protective gear. The government is also asking people to cover their faces in enclosed spaces where social distancing is difficult.  The government’s oal is to return elementary-school children to schools on June 1 for a month if possible, but in smaller classes. Secondary schools and colleges should prepare for face-to-face contact with students who have key exams next year, but most of their classes will still be remote learning from home.  Cultural and sporting events will be allowed to take place behind closed doors for broadcast from June 1. Costly finesFines for breaking the guidelines will be increased. Violators could face charges of close to $4,000 to ensure compliance. Johnson said a COVID alert system with danger levels 1 to 5 will be established to help adjust the safety measures as needed. Level 5 in red indicates that health care services are being overwhelmed, while Level 1 in green signals an end to COVID-19 presence in Britain. The country is presently at Level 4, which means the virus transmission is high or rising. The prime minister said every step forward will be conditional on the coronavirus situation and taken with precaution. 
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British media are reporting that the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) has issued a wanted notice for a U.S. woman who is accused of killing a British teenager during a car crash last year.  A so-called “Red Notice” was issued for Anne Sacoolas, the wife of a U.S. diplomat, meaning she could provisionally be arrested if she leaves the United States. Such notices are usually initiated by a member country but are not the same as an international arrest warrant.  Sacoolas claimed diplomatic immunity after a deadly car crash in Britain last August and swiftly returned to the United States, setting off a diplomatic dispute between London and Washington.  Britain has requested her extradition, but U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo rejected that request in January.   When asked Monday if Britain pushed for the Interpol notice, a spokesperson for Prime Minister Boris Johnson said only that the British government continues to believe that Sacoolas should return to Britain to face judgment.  He said the U.S. decision not to extradite Sacoolas was a “denial of justice.” “She should return to the U.K. We have made this clear to the U.S., including the prime minister to President (Donald) Trump,” the spokesperson said. Sacoolas, 42, has been charged by British prosecutors in the death by dangerous driving of 19-year-old Harry Dunn, who was riding a motorcycle when Sacoolas’s car crashed into him.  The accident took place outside RAF Croughton, a British military base in central England used by U.S. forces. At the time, Sacoolas’s husband was an intelligence officer at the base.  Dunn’s parents urged Sacoolas to return to Britain to face justice. They met with Trump at the White House last October in an effort to bring about her extradition. Trump had hoped to persuade the family to meet with Sacoolas who was in another room, but they declined.  Dunn’s mother, Charlotte Charles, said on Twitter Monday that the Interpol development was “important news.”    “I just want to urge Mrs. Sacoolas to come back to the UK and do the right thing,” she added.  
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The red-light district is one of the main tourist attractions in Amsterdam. While coronavirus lockdown restrictions are starting to ease, sex work is not allowed to resume until September. Advocacy groups say the lack of support for sex workers has exposed how vulnerable they are under Dutch law.Hella Dee, not her real name, has been working in brothels in and around Amsterdam for the past 10 years, but she hasn’t had any income since COVID-19 restrictions were enforced in March.She started a fundraising campaign when she realized how many of her colleagues were in financial distress. “We need to take bigger risks because there’s hardly any clients out there and taking bigger risks leads to, you know, more people experiencing violence,” Dee said. “So we’ve been raising funds and distributing emergency fees … for people who need money today to pay for food, to pay for other basic expenses, medicine, transport.”FILE – A lone man walks past closed brothels in the capital’s famous red-light district on a weekend night in the center of Amsterdam, Netherlands, March 20, 2020.The campaign collected over $20,000 that was distributed to over 400 sex workers.Masten Stavast, who rents out 31 windows to sex workers in the famous red-light district of Amsterdam, doesn’t understand why massage parlors are operating again in the Netherlands, but sex workers will be the last group to resume work.Stavast is compiling a protocol with sex workers, club owners and other people from the red-light district to lobby policymakers on how sex work can safely resume before September.”The reason to put it on the last group is really strange, especially because it’s always one to one, and not in a crowd or whatever,” Stavast said. “If everything goes all right on July 1, there can be 100 people together, why not one to one then with all the protection that everybody has?”Many sex workers are excluded from the billions of dollars of government support offered to overcome economic hardship due to coronavirus lockdown measures. The reasons for their exclusion varies, from not being registered at the chamber of commerce, to working in private clubs that fall under different labor laws.The Netherlands was one of the first countries in the world to regulate sex work in 2000, but a new national proposed law would force sex workers to acquire permits. At the same time, the city of Amsterdam wants to limit window prostitution in the center.Yvette Luhrs, a sex worker who mostly works online, is also a rights activist aligned with the Prostitution Information Center in Amsterdam. Luhrs worries about the future of sex work in the Netherlands after coronavirus.”The city council of Amsterdam but also the national government, they’re both in the procedure of creating new laws and regulations around sex work and they turn out to be very restrictive,” Luhrs said. “And the fact that the brothels are closed now and people are in this corona scare, we assume they will use this crisis to push their new laws.”The United Nations stated in April that sex workers across the world are reporting a lack of access to coronavirus emergency social protection schemes, and urged countries to not leave sex workers behind in their response to the virus.The red-light district has been located along the canals of Amsterdam since the 15th century. It attracts millions of tourists each year. 
 
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