Catalonia court rules restaurants, bars can stay open past midnight
Kusai Kedri
Press TV, Barcelona
A new legal setback has hit Catalonia's authorities in their race to stem the spread of the coronavirus. On Friday, The region's top court ruled that restaurants and cafes can stay open past midnight starting from August 2nd, provided they respect social distancing measures and guidelines on their maximum capacity.
Cafes and bars in the El Born neighborhood in Barcelona seemed to welcome the news.
In the nearby Barceloneta, the once bustling village before it was hit by a massive drop in tourism, the managers of a family-run restaurant say working for a few more hours will generate a small, but much-needed profit margin.
Catalonia's leading Federation of Associations of Restoration and Musical Activities, which led the charge against the regional government, is now urging the court to lift the ban on other businesses which were shut down amid a surge in coronavirus infections.
Health experts were hard to reach to comment on the court ruling. In a Q&A with Press TV, computational biologist Enric Alvarez says reports show indoor and outdoor clubs and terraces are the source of relevant clusters.
Catalonia passed new restrictive measures following an alarming spike in its COVID-19 infections.
Health authorities have reported a slight decrease in daily new cases, but insist the situation remains critical in metropolitan Barcelona. The total infection tally across the region is estimated to be nearing 100,000, with over 12,700 fatalities.
The dispute over COVID-19 policy underscores a challenging dilemma for decision-makers as they have to choose between opening up the economy and saving lives. For now, Catalan officials have chosen to abide by the court while hoping for the best.
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