Salzburg, Austria
Across Austria, the streets are alive with the sounds of drums and cow bells. Ever since the Austrian government announced a vaccine mandate in November 2021, with vaccine refuseniks set to face fines, potential bankruptcies and possible prison sentences from February this year, demonstrations against the proposed measures have not ceased.
You can see why their fears are justified. Just a few days before the vaccine mandate was revealed, the authorities also stepped up their war on the unvaccinated by announcing that a new lockdown would be introduced – but that it would only apply to partially vaccinated and unvaccinated people. While these measures only lasted a short time before Omicron entered the stage and the entire country was plunged into its fourth lockdown, in mid-December the government announced that restrictions would be lifted, but only for the fully unvaccinated again.
While the ‘vaccine mandate’ sword hangs precariously over their heads before the measure is introduced in February, Austria’s large minority of unvaccinated people are essentially unable to participate in society.
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