It’s been eight months of masks, of lockdowns and curfews, of living in fear of COVID 19. And around the world, people are saying they’ve had enough. Coronavirus fatigue is setting in. Not just from the virus itself, but the restrictions governments have implemented to slow its spread. People are gathering closer together. Wearing face masks less often. Some of the reactions have been angry. Demonstrations against coronavirus restrictions have drawn tens of thousands of protestors into the streets. With a vaccine likely still months away, people’s desire to return to normality, and the growing backlash to restrictions, is becoming a major risk. In Belgium, people are returning to school and work after the summer break. The number of new daily cases there is falling, but the country has one of Europe’s highest death rates. Nevertheless, a study in the Dutch-speaking region of Flanders, home to more than half the population, shows 70 percent of people no longer support the restrictive measures aimed at slowing the spread of the virus. Our reporter Teri Schulz sent this report from Brussels.
Frustration with coronavirus restrictions grows | COVID19 Special
