In Auckland, the corona virus could not be eradicated even with the strict lockdown of the past few weeks. Now Ardern has announced easing for the largest city in the country. From Wednesday, meetings of up to ten people should be allowed there again outdoors. Ardern admitted that despite strict restrictions, it had not been possible to reduce the number of new infections in Auckland to zero, as envisaged by the government’s zero-covid strategy. “Even with the long-term restrictions that we had, we obviously haven’t reached zero,” she said, referring to the infection numbers in the city of Auckland, which has a population of two million.
“Do not give up the zero-covid strategy immediately”
Ardern said her government will not immediately abandon the zero-covid strategy. The government will ease the restrictions in Auckland but slightly, even if the number of new cases has not decreased. She added that this change in strategy was only possible thanks to the significant increase in the vaccination rate.
Auckland still largely sealed off
Auckland will therefore remain largely cordoned off until further notice. From Wednesday, meetings outside with up to ten people should be allowed again in New Zealand’s most populous city. The government wants to examine further easing every week. More shops and schools could open again in the coming weeks. At the end of September, some shops such as restaurants with delivery service had already reopened. The New Zealand opposition leader Judith Collins criticized Ardern’s corona strategy. Instead of developing a coherent strategy to replace the zero-covid approach, the head of government merely presented a “vague wish list”.
New Zealand has been practically closed off since the beginning of the pandemic
New Zealand imposed a nationwide lockdown in mid-August to contain an outbreak of the highly contagious Delta variant. After three weeks, restrictions in the rest of the country were largely lifted as the outbreak turned out to be confined to Auckland. Over the weekend, 2,000 people protested at an unauthorized demonstration against the extension of the lockdown.
New Zealand has been largely isolated from the rest of the world since the beginning of the pandemic. Until the August Delta eruption, life for New Zealanders was almost normal for months. The island nation was therefore seen worldwide as a role model in the fight against Corona: In the country with its five million inhabitants, there have been only 27 deaths from Covid-19 since the beginning of the pandemic.
