'Freedom' as Spaniards celebrate end of curfew
People celebrate as the state of emergency decreed by the Spanish Government to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 gets lifted at Puerta del Sol Square in Madrid, Spain on Sunday.
Exhilarated Spaniards danced in streets, chanted “freedom” and partied on beaches overnight as a COVID-19 curfew ended across most of the nation.
In scenes akin to New Year’s Eve celebrations, hundreds of mainly young people gathered in Madrid’s Puerta del Sol Square to applaud the clock striking midnight while in Barcelona revelers headed to the beach with drinks in hand.
Some people wore masks but there was scant social distancing as friends kissed, hugged, danced and sang.
“Young people, like everyone else, have been very restricted,” said shop worker Paula Garcia, 28, in Barcelona.
“Now was time to give us a bit of freedom to enjoy a little of the summer.”
But social media videos of large groups paying little heed to COVID-19 distancing drew criticism from some.
“Freedom does not include breaking the rules,” said Madrid’s conservative mayor Jose Luis Martinez-Almeida, emphasizing that gatherings to drink on the street were prohibited.
One of Europe’s worst-hit nations, Spain has suffered 78,792 coronavirus deaths and 3.6 million cases. But infection rates have fallen, enabling most of the 17 regions to scrap the curfew until dawn. Only four regions were keeping it: the Balearic Islands, the Canary Islands, Navarra and Valencia.
