Not a day longer than necessary will hold the lockdown imposed to stem the spread of the coronavirus, Angela Merkel said, urging people to show a little more patience after yesterday's agreement with regional leaders to extend it. until March 7.
Speaking in the Bundestag, the lower house of the German parliament, the chancellor noted that the extension of the lockdown was necessary to avoid a third wave of the epidemic due to the danger posed by the new strains of the coronavirus.
"I know that what we have achieved in our fight against the virus has had and still has a high price," said the German chancellor.
What can be opened before March 7
A gradual drop in the number of new cases recorded on a daily basis has increased pressure to ease severe restrictions in Germany since mid-December, and Merkel agreed on Wednesday with state prime ministers that some schools and hairdressers could open sooner than March 7.
Seeking to reassure Germans that Lockdown was helping, the chancellor said she knew it was the most serious restriction of freedoms in post-war Germany and understood that many people felt lonely and worried about their financial situation and future.
"As a democracy, we have a duty not to maintain restrictions even one day longer than necessary," she said.
Europe's largest economy shrank by 5% last year, and some businesses were disappointed by the recent extension of quarantine and the lack of a timetable for easing measures.
The coronavirus vaccination program gives hope for the coming months, Merkel said, adding that she understands the frustration of the public over the availability of the vaccine in Germany, which is taking place at a much slower pace than in Britain, Israel and the USA.
To avoid a third wave of the epidemic requires a little more patience, he added.
"I do not believe that going back and forth - opening and then closing again - will offer the world more predictability than waiting for a few more days," Merkel concluded.