Around 200 Ukrainian entrepreneurs took part in a protest called “Government into Quarantine!” in central Kyiv on May 6. The demonstrators demand that the government provide support for small businesses and ease quarantine restrictions introduced in March to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
The small business owners blocked Hrushevskoho Street with their cars until police let them march to the Cabinet of Ministers building to protest.
This wasn’t the first “business” protest against the quarantine. On April 29, several hundred small business owners gathered outside the Cabinet of Ministers building, demanding more government support, equal working conditions for all companies and an easing of Ukraine’s coronavirus lockdown.
On May 2, nearly 100 restaurant owners and other protesters set up tables and served food outside the President’s Office building during a rally organized to demand the government allow restaurants in Ukraine to resume table service at outdoor terraces during the quarantine.
On May 4, the government announced that it would prolong the quarantine until May 22, but would ease restrictions and allow a number of types of businesses to reopen after May 11. The government openly admitted that this was a concession to the business community.
CORONAVIRUS IN UKRAINE: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
- As of May 6: 327 people have died from COVID-19 in Ukraine; 2,097 people have recovered.
- 13,184 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ukraine as of May 6. The first case was identified on March 3.
- Ukraine has extended its quarantine measures until May 22. The government outlined a plan to ease restrictions gradually.
- The measures shuttered most everything but hospitals, supermarkets, pharmacies, banks, gas stations, and other critical enterprises.
- How the Ukrainian government has been responding: TIMELINE
- Misinformation on coronavirus is going viral in Ukraine.
- Doctor’s advice: How to stay safe.
- Foreign Ministry: What you need to know about traveling to and from Ukraine now
- Why the Kyiv Post isn’t making its coverage free in the times of COVID-19.
- Coronavirus stops the Kyiv Post’s print edition for now.
- Where to buy masks.
Effects on the economy:
- COVID-19 is already inflicting harm on Ukraine’s economy.
- The former minister of economy says half a million Ukrainians may lose their jobs in the COVID-19 crisis.
