BERLIN— A
contrite Chancellor Angela Merkel on Wednesday ditched a short-lived plan for
an extended Easter holiday to try to break a third COVID-19 wave, apologizing
to lockdown-weary Germans after the hastily conceived measure drew widespread criticism.
اضافة اعلان
At
talks that ran into the early hours of Tuesday, Merkel and the leaders of
Germany's 16 states agreed to call on citizens to stay at home for five days
over Easter.
The
measure would have meant all stores, including essential ones, closing for an
extra day on April 1.
It
triggered a backlash, with businesses lamenting more shutdowns and medical
experts saying it was not tough enough to prevent the exponential spread of
more infectious variants of the virus.
"The
idea of an Easter shutdown was drafted with the best of intentions. We urgently
need to stop and reverse the third wave," Merkel told reporters on
Wednesday.
But
it was not possible to implement the measures so quickly, Merkel said,
apologizing for the added uncertainty that it had caused Germans.
"This
mistake is mine alone," she said. "I ask all citizens for
forgiveness."
Merkel's
apology came against a backdrop of growing public frustration with her
government over the slow rollout of COVID-19 vaccines and extended lockdown
measures.
A
poll released on Wednesday showed public support for her conservatives slumping
to its lowest in over a year ahead of a national election in September.
There is no
blueprint
After
making her statement to reporters, Merkel again acknowledged her mistake before
lawmakers, some of whom heckled her. She then reiterated her apology, to
applause from other parliamentarians.
The
business lobby quickly rallied behind her.
"The
chancellor's courageous decision demonstrates leadership," said employers'
president Rainer Dulger. "There is no blueprint for managing this
crisis."
The
HDE association of retailers also welcomed Merkel's announcement, saying that
closing stores for an extra day ahead of Easter would have caused logistical
problems and prompted shoppers to rush to stock up earlier.
"With
today's decision, a bit of reason is returning to coronavirus policy," HDE
president Stefan Genth said.
Finance
Minister Olaf Scholz, who is his center-left Social Democrat party's candidate
for chancellor in the election, said Merkel made the right decision to reverse
the Easter lockdown plans, but that the government had to avoid similar
mishaps.
"We
have to prepare such decisions well and in a better way in the future," he
told reporters on Wednesday.
Christian
Lindner, head of the opposition pro-business Free Democrats, called on Merkel
to ask parliament for a vote of confidence.
Merkel,
who has led Germany since 2005, has said she will not stand for a fifth term in
September. Her conservative bloc has yet to settle on a chancellor candidate.
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