The Netherlands: Minister for Health rules out crowded events without a covid-19 vaccine found;Is Eurovision 2021 in jeopardy?
The Dutch Minister for Health, has stated that mass events won’t be able to take place if a coronavirus vaccine is not found.
The Netherlands’ Minister for Health Hugo de Jonge, in a letter sent to the parliament , according to NPO report, stated that no mass events can take place in the country as long as there is no vaccine found for the coronavirus.
Such a statement of course immediately raises the question whether the next edtiion of the Eurovision Song Contest is in jeorpardy under such a ban for mass events. The Eurovision Song Contest is a major music event that gather thousands of people from around the world. Dozens of acts and delegations, hundreds of press media outlets along with thousands of fans in the arena and the ESC venues make up this picture of the two Eurovision weeks.
De Jonge wrote:
“For the last step, that’s massive events on a national scale, we can not yet give a date [for them to resume].That is only possible once there is a vaccine, and no one knows how long that will take. Of course we hope soon, but a year or more is very likely.”
On the other hand scientists across the globe are in full steam in seek for an effective vaccine. While some experts say that an effective vaccine can be ready within the next six months, the majority of them with health experts talk about a time limit that extends to 18 months until a vaccine can be used widely on the populations.
Meanwhile, like Eurovision , other major events have been cancelled or postponed for next year. Among them stand out the Olympic games that may have been postponed for next July-August 2021 but the exact dates cannot be determined without an effective vaccine is on the table.
Japan Medical Association President Yoshitake Yokokura said :
In my view, it would be difficult to hold the Olympics unless effective vaccines are developed
In the light of all these facts its rational to wonder if next year’s Eurovision Song Contest will be able to take place without a vaccine is developed and with the scenarios describing a second wave of the pandemic coming in next autumn. Of course there’s always the option even under difficult circumstances for the competition to take place in a different form, for example without an audience.
In any case the realistic approach will be to wait and see how the spread of the virus develops the months to come and which progress will the research for vaccine meet the following months.
