France vs Coronavirus

In France, at the time of writing, more than 162,100 cases of coronavirus have been reported, which has led to 22,856 deaths but fortunately 44,903 people have recovered.

However, there are big questions that remain such as: Was France ready for this epidemic? How has the French lifestyle had to change due to Emmanuel Macrons’ new rules? How will France be after the lockdown?

I am currently in France and all I can say is that I do not recognise my country. Since the lockdown, Emmanuel Macron the French president, has declared new rules. I feel like I am living in a war. We cannot go out and if we do, we need to have an attestation saying where we are going and why and our ID ready to show. On the attestation there are different options: Medicine appointment, work, groceries, or sport limited to 1 hour with one meter of distance between each other.

All the streets are empty, the vibes aren’t the same. One day I went to the grocery store with my sister and there are signs everywhere. People are wearing masks and gloves and there was a lack of food.

France was not ready at all for this pandemic. I know that France has a world-renowned health care system, immense wealth, ample social welfare, a centralized government and a strong presidency which is the reason why I came back to my country for the lockdown.

On the contrary to this however, France has unfortunately experienced shortages of hospital beds, masks and other critical products.

Even if the situation gets better in France (less deaths and cases) last Monday, Emanuel Macron admitted: “Were we prepared for this crisis? On the face of it, not enough. But we coped,” on TF1 (Télèvision Française 1), which he announced an extension of the nation’s lockdown to May 11th.

Macron has also said schools and créches (except universities) in France will reopen From May 11th. This would be one of the first steps France would take into what the president called "a new stage" of the coronavirus epidemic - a "progressive" unwinding of the current strict lockdown.

Children have been confined to their homes since mid-March when the government ordered the lockdown. Francette Popineau, Co-General Secretary and spokesperson of the largest teacher's union FSU said that:"May 11th has been designated as a miracle day when all our problems will have been solved".

By Coline Buffels