At least 64% of cities in the country canceled public New Year’s Eve celebrations to avoid crowding. The survey was carried out by the National Confederation of Municipalities (CNM).
This is mainly due to the confirmation of cases of the Ômicron variant of the new coronavirus in Brazil and the fear of another wave of contamination.
In addition to the cities that have already announced the cancellation of the New Year’s Eve party, the CNM study shows that another 23% of city halls have not yet decided on the event. The survey had the participation of 2,600 mayors across Brazil and was published this Friday (10).
The survey also highlights that only 11% of Brazilian municipalities should keep the event that celebrates the turn of the year. The city of Rio de Janeiro, for example, is among the places that decided to keep the year-end festivities.
In a press conference this Thursday (9), the mayor of Rio, Eduardo Paes, guaranteed the New Year’s Eve in the city of Rio de Janeiro, even though he knows that there will be crowding on Copacabana beach, a place known worldwide for the fireworks display on the date.
“Of course there will be, in fact, crowding is not prohibited in the city of Rio. We have, if you want this weekend, walk with me around the city. For 15 weeks we have allowed agglomeration in the city of Rio, without masks”, said Paes in response to CNN.
For Gulnar Azevedo, a member of the Brazilian Association of Public Health and a professor at the State University of Rio de Janeiro (UERJ), the decision to allow end-of-year parties is ‘premature’, as the aggressiveness of the ‘micron’ variant is still unknown.
“It’s very difficult for you to release the holiday season, with fireworks, and ask people to exercise physical distance or wear a protective mask. The most prudent is precaution, as we are not yet sure about the clinical evolution and transmissibility of the new variant. The decision to allow parties and gatherings in Brazil is premature”, emphasizes Gulnar Azevedo.
Carnival
Moving forward with the celebrations, the CNM survey also questioned the mayors about the possibility of holding Carnival. The compiled data show that 63% of cities have already decided not to hold the event in 2022. Already 33% of municipalities are still studying the celebration, while 1.4% said they will hold Carnival.
Reference: CNN Brasil
