The Leopoldina Academy presents suggestions on how public life could be normalized again despite the corona pandemic. The paper is likely to influence upcoming political decisions.
one is for the far-reaching restrictions of public life to be lifted again gradually. The others warn of impatience and fear that a quick end to the measures could ruin the successes achieved. The National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina has positioned itself on this issue and recommends the Federal Government to gradually start-up public and economic life again. It is now a matter of promoting “dealing with the situation on one’s own responsibility”.
The National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina worked with a panel of scientists from various disciplines to develop recommendations for the Federal Government on Easter Days. As the experts on Monday afternoon her opinion published, the academy’s servers collapsed. The document was not available online for hours. The tremendous interest is likely to be linked to a statement by Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU). Last week she announced that she wanted to use the study as a guide. The academy had already dealt with the pandemic in two previous statements.
Final exams should take place
Now she recommends reopening schools as soon as possible under certain conditions. The return to normality can only be gradual. The academy advises that the classes be divided into groups of a maximum of 15 students. Classes and breaks should take place at different times, and at least in elementary school, classes should be limited to subjects such as German or mathematics. Final exams should take place “on all educational stages”. With this, the academy speaks out against solutions such as the so-called average high school diploma, in which the grades of the past six months would be added together to give a high school diploma in order to be able to do without the final exam.
The experts link all of their recommendations to preconditions: The health system must not be overloaded. It was crucial that the hygiene rules were observed and that there was only a manageable number of infections. The number of people newly infected with the virus has decreased in recent days. At the beginning of the corona outbreak in Germany in mid-March, the total number of people infected had doubled every three days. This value has now reached 20 days. According to Johns Hopkins University in the Federal Republic, around 128,000 people have tested positive for the virus, about half of which are already healthy.
Hope for gastronomy and retail
If the numbers settle at this level, the academy recommends opening restaurants and shops again. Business and private trips could also be permitted again. All of this, however, only if the precautionary measures are observed. The academy also includes wearing face masks. The experts write that a mouthguard obligation should be imposed on public transport. A mouthguard should also be worn at school.
Despite these clauses, the direction of the paper is quite clear: the state must make it possible for citizens to live a “decent life”, it says fundamentally. In addition to protecting health, this also includes giving citizens back their “ability to act” – in the social, economic, political and cultural sense. However, this could only happen in stages. It is important that the inevitable recession is not too severe and that the economy finds its way back to growth. However, a new upswing should be shaped more strongly than before by the principles of sustainability, the committee writes. In addition, the state could make a contribution with tax relief or prefer the end of the solidarity surcharge. In general, the federal government should hold on to the debt brake.
Panel demands clear schedule
The academy advises political decision-makers not to underestimate the sense of responsibility among the population. Instead of relying on sanctions, the government should rather trust that citizens act in solidarity and take care to protect themselves from the virus. Politicians now have to present a clear timetable for how public life can be normalized again, the report says.
The measures decided so far apply until April 19. The next step will be to decide in the middle of the week. Chancellor Merkel wants to assess the situation with the Prime Ministers on Wednesday in a switching conference. Before that, the Corona crisis cabinet met again. The Leopoldina’s panel of experts has given the government a well-founded report. Now the ball is with Merkel, her ministers and the federal states, which have so far had trouble agreeing on a common line.
