Thousands of people, many of them far-right supporters, protested in Vienna on Saturday (November 20) against coronavirus restrictions, a day after the Austrian government announced a new lockdown and said vaccines would become mandatory next year.
Whistling, clapping, blowing horns and beating drums, the crowd poured into Heroes' Square in front of the Hofburg, the former imperial palace in central Vienna. Many protesters waved Austrian and other flags and carried signs with slogans such as "no vaccination", "enough is enough" or "down with the fascist dictatorship", reports Reuters.
Approximately 66 percent of Austria's population is fully vaccinated against Covid-19, which is one of the lowest rates in Western Europe. Many Austrians are skeptical about vaccines, a view encouraged by the far-right Freedom Party, the third-largest in parliament.
With daily infections still setting records even after self-isolation for the unvaccinated was introduced this week, the government said on Friday it would return Austria to lockdown from Monday and make vaccination compulsory from 1 February.
The Freedom Party (FPO) was already planning demonstrations in Vienna on Saturday when Friday's announcement fired up its base and prompted FPO leader Herbert Kikl to respond that "Austria is a dictatorship from today."
Although Kickl was unable to attend because he was infected with Covid-19, thousands of people responded to calls from the FPO and other vaccine-critical groups to protest across the city.
"We are not in favor of our government's measures," said one protester who was part of a group with tin foil on their heads and toilet brushes in their hands. Like most of the protesters who spoke to the media, they declined to give their names, even though the mood was festive.
Demonstrations against restrictions across Europe
Demonstrations against the restrictions were also announced in other European countries, including Switzerland, Croatia and Italy.
Protests were also organized in the Netherlands on Friday, November 19. At least seven people were injured in the riots that broke out in the center of Rotterdam, and the police opened fire on the crowd who were lighting fires and throwing oysters.
In Europe, the number of people infected with the coronavirus is increasing and several countries have announced the tightening of restrictive measures in recent days, including Sweden, Germany and Greece.
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