World News | French Virus Health Pass in Full Use but Protests Keep Going

Paris, Aug 21 (AP) Thousands marched Saturday in cities across France to protest the COVID-19 health pass that is now required to access restaurants and cafes, cultural venues, sports arenas and long-distance travel.

For a sixth straight Saturday, opponents denounced what they see as a restriction of their freedom. Many criticized the measure, claiming the French government was implicitly making vaccines obligatory.

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In Paris, four demonstrations were organized by different groups and over 200 protests were taking place elsewhere in French cities and towns. Last week more than 200,000 marchers turned out.

The pass shows that people are fully vaccinated, have had a recent negative test or proof of a recent COVID-19 recovery. The law authorising it also made vaccinations mandatory for French health workers by Sept. 15.

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Despite the protests, polls have shown that the majority of French people support the health pass. Millions have received their first vaccine shot since French President Emmanuel Macron announced the measure on July 12.

Since last month, France is registering a high number of infections — about 22,000 each day, a figure that has remained stable over the past week.

Over 47 million people in France, or 70.2 per cent of the population, have received at least one vaccine shot and more than 40.5 million, or 60.5 per cent, are fully vaccinated. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)