Harsh measures experienced earlier in the year. Theyre going to have you know its like the 1st time its catastrophic we would just have to try and survive weve had some state aid and that something its better than nothing but well see. But belgian Officials Say the measures are absolutely necessary the countrys Health Minister says the Health System could soon be overwhelmed by infections and warned of a coming through nami of cases many doctors share his concerns. The sky is more or less blue but we can see a huge wave is about to arrive its inevitable authorities hope the drastic set of measures will have a quick impact they say theyll review the results in 2 weeks time. And for more lets bring in our very own they are mattis who is joining us from brussels they are why has belgium been hit so hard. Well sarah a big issue here is of course the book mortality rate the 3rd highest in the world but to explain that you need to understand the broad criteria that belgium uses to get to these numbers and the reason is that only 50 percent of the cases are actually confirmed caray corona cases the other ones of possible cases that have not been confirmed whether coronavirus testing the reason is that in the 1st wave of the pandemic here in belgium the country was so hard hits that they wanted an easy way to to count deaths and that is why they installed the system that now makes the numbers of the death rate look really bad on the other hand youre right of course numbers here i stream the high with belgium having a small population extremely high numbers 2 possible explanations one is that the tracking system has been rather weak its not been running smoothly a corona app has only been installed in the past 2 weeks and another thing is testing and thats not running smoothly either i had one test where of waited 5 days in order to get the results back and we have to acknowledge and mention that it is not just belgium that is seeing this uptick it is also the broader year given that dark how are restrictions being balanced with principles of Free Movement across the block. Id say the use doing much better than in the 1st wave a lot of more coordination is going on a traffic light system has been introduced so the e. U. Member states agreed that they do not want to restrict Free Movement within the for the visa free travel area of europe if youre traveling from a green area to another green area now that at the moment the city isnt much the case with a lot of orange and red on the map now with the in these cases its still not clear entirely its not come theres no common standard for you Member States how to handle this so it really depends on the National State to decide whether or how long you should go into care and time and what test you need in order to travel to the neighboring country or to another human mistake and given all of that there are where the solidarity stand right now in the block and it has coated been more of a strain or or a united or id say the lesson is well learn from the 1st corona wife that waif that hits europe so nobody wants to go back to traffic jams and medical products being blocked going to another year Member States so when you look at it from a broader picture the e. U. Not being a nation state but brother being an organisation i think the level of cooperation you see on the regional level is i would say its above the monks the best in the world so there is quite a bit of courting nation now when it comes for instance to buying or ordering mutual of vaccines that are then can be handed out but also when it comes to research and hospital cooperation so quite a push at the moment from the European Commission in order to be in a good position to face the 2nd wave of matzos with a view from brussels thank you. And russia is also logging record case loads of covert 19 more than 16000 on tuesday alone authorities there are doing all they can however to avoid another unpopular lockdown theyre also touting new russian made vaccines due to be rolled out soon and as you found out for many people thats music to their ears for. Music is his drug nikolai morrow jokes to him its essential. For the professional musician directs an amateur choir in moscow the group is getting ready for an Upcoming Event as if nothing has happened no 2nd wave of coronavirus during the pandemic that has swept across russia and the whole world no one here wants to stop singing despite the risk of infection. What were doing with the risk here is no greater than the risk of riding the subway or going to the supermarket every day of course we had here to Safety Measures keep our distance while sitting constantly pour disinfectant all over ourselves and so on but ultimately belief and hope remain. A very immature little critter. Hope that all goes well something the russians now could use as their country has ranked number 4 world wide in new infection rates for weeks about 15000 covert 1000 cases are registered each day in russia despite this dramatic situation officials want to avoid another lockdown like the one this spring. Weve just extended the School Vacation to 2 weeks all businesses are 1st being given the recommendation and later will be ordered to have their employees work mostly from home more than most would be doing that is a bit of both bars and restaurants must obey hygiene measures in order to stay open the city performs frequent checks on individual restaurants and supermarkets. And imposes penalties of customers or staff dont wear masks for example. Starting this week all guests must register with an electronic code when they visit bars. But many are not especially worried about the risk of infection so do the were all going to infect each other anyway half the country has already survived mild cases a coronavirus myself included. That it will be i had coronavirus without symptoms and im not afraid now i think that sooner or later well all get it. They get tested for corona virus regularly so that they can attend as many rehearsals possible if one singer tests positive for covert 19 he says everyone would be notified immediately. This was a kidney was more we cant live without music when we were in coron teen for nearly half a near the spring and couldnt sing together we nearly sobbed in despair. Many of the choir singers want to get vaccinated against coronavirus as soon as possible russia has just approved its 2nd vaccine against coven 1000 despite International Scientists grave safety concerns. And lets cross over now to day that he is moscow correspondent yury of a shadow yury we just heard in your report it mentioned those 2 vaccines that have been approved there in russia do we know how effective they are and what is the outlook for distribution. Well. This week putin announced to the approval of this 2nd new Coronavirus Vaccine even though neither of the russian vaccines have passed to the 3rd phase of rigorous safety trials required in the u. S. And europe earlier in august put in a report of the 1st books a nation even more one of hes daughters has been given the russian vaccine hes sad this is surely called the authentic its clear that the 1st to develop a vaccine is a winner in the eyes of the establishment and ordinary people for putin this might be his personal back through. A visit to taste face of the vaccine will only end in spring only then we will be able to see the effectiveness of the russian vaccine despite all the knowledge hes talked with us a little bit about the general situation because the number of cases in russia is increasing how well prepared are the medical facilities there. Well from a medical perspective fresh air has of course learnt a lot from the 1st wave its not so to the old country but the basic Service Works here and its mostly for free even meaning crude basic medical service of course of the authorities have also learned a lot how to avoid next in the hospitals but we shouldnt forget about the huge gap between the capital moscow and the province. Solely western european the city with pretty high medical standards but most is russias calling card and the western bubble the countryside is very different pandemic is much more dangerous there because many hospitals are poorly equipped theyre also shot at just over well trained to stuff since wages are extremely low and the best doctors all here in moscow compared with other nations i mean we least we saw those pictures for example of the choir that was practicing there they werent Wearing Masks you know they they were singing. Are the russians in general a bit more relaxed about the pen dymock and if so why is that the case here ie. Well until a week ago i would say people in moscow were actually very relaxed you could cardless see any face masks its partly due to a long and tough lockdown russians experience in march. Muscovites sat at home for almost 3 months and of course people felt relieved once the resurrection swore lifted a memory of the lockdown is still present the film nobody wants to do its to happen again secondly there is also the russian mentality of this socalled voice a voice means everything will be fine somehow thirdly is the governments Information Campaign plays also are all aims it aims to avoid hard to lock down as i showed it in my report but as i said it was like this and we could go now the tide is turning in russia to and we see for example Police Officers officers taking people at subway entrances for we are in the face much so lets see if in another knock down may be imposed here in russia to the area shuttling muska thank you. Its going to take a quick check of some other stories making news around the world the United Arab Emirates and israel have signed a series of accords in tel aviv thats after the 1st ever government delegation from the u. A. E. Arrived on israeli soil last month the u. A. E. And bahrain became the 1st arab gulf states to establish formal ties with israel in a deal brokered by the united states. Firefighters in the u. S. State of colorado are battling the states largest wildfires on record new blazes continue to erupt across the drought stricken state and have destroyed 26. 00 homes Authorities Say that the burning is happening at an unusually late time of the year in a period where it should be snowing. The u. S. Supreme court has ruled that the state of pennsylvania can count some mail in ballots for up to 3 days after polling day even if they do not appear to have a clear postmark the ruling is a blow to republicans who had sought to nullify such balance it could also prove consequential with pennsylvania one of the most critical swing states in the election. Youre watching to come on the program will the pandemic spell the end of berkeley and able to nightlife many people think the partys over. But 1st another victim of the Global Pandemic has been for press freedom in some countries journalists there have been harassed and arrested for reporting on the spread of the virus and some governments have introduced laws punishing those who share information that doesnt support the official line muzzling the press can also in danger public health. Behind the mosque of corona virus censorship spreads journalists around the world have come under attack for reporting on the pandemic it started in china where citizen journalists dared to deviate from the official narrative. Images of overstretched hospitals in ruhani which hundreds of viruses right in front of me are chinas criminal prosecutors are behind me im not afraid of death do you think im afraid of you communist party of china or pas going well. Chang she should wear disappeared in february and was only seen again by friends in September Fung been another reporter remains missing he had released secret videos of corona virus victims. She. Reporters without borders has documented coronavirus coverage restrictions in nearly half of all u. N. Member states those who are jailed are at risk of infection. Al jazeera journalist mohammad more near died in july from coronavirus after being arrested in egypt as did reporters. Jailed for documenting corruption in saudi arabia the deliberate targeting of the press has worried the United NationsHuman Rights Commission all across the world called 1000 is also being instrumental lies to limit peoples rights to speak to express opinion and to participate in making decisions that affect their lives in the Russian Federation china kosovo many other countries i know of reports of threats and intimidation against journalists brokers and civic activist particularly at the local level with the apparent aim of this courage in criticism of the oil for this response is to keep it 19. At a time when information can save lives press repression can fuel the pandemic. And lets get more on this we are joined by errol under he is joining us from istanbul a journalist and a representative of Reporters Without Borders in turkey welcome to the program and thank you so much for joining us well as we just heard there there are reports of some governments around the world attacking journalists for reporting on the coronavirus even jailing them what are you seeing. I think the policy in turkey has started very rightly when some 15 threw a can reporter. Arrested in the 1st few months so. They were mainly covering and trying to raise awareness about the. 19. Turkish authorities preferred to monaco lies. The day time and the coverage of. The 19 Mainstream Media refrained from covering the critical voices and just the general minister of have himself was. Made as for person today we understand that its not enough to create Awareness Among the society the government complain of the lack of Awareness Among the society but. This government has done Everything Possible to to arrest rate critical voices when they argue that the case the scorn of irish cases. Was more than what is revealed by o. Pressure ok so youre observing the restriction of critical voices you say there how do you see that impacting Public Awareness about. Gays its very difficult to explain to people that 7 months later they have. Their wish to lead a risk of. Gaining themselves. And. Many many. Of these. Hopi shall return are not. People to take the most draconian measures today and. Probably to stream media. He was told he didnt homophobe you didnt to refer to financial crisis or social challenges that were not vibrant. Produce you got to survive and the british we are we have a. T. V. Show which now we have to go cory. Byrd dr drew but not pretty good for you too true weve had a guy be reheard to social challenges thank you so much for joining us to tell us more about that errol. Joining us from Reporters Without Borders from istanbul. Heres a look at some other developments in the coronavirus pandemic the World Health Organization has linked rising case numbers in the Northern Hemisphere to a failure to quarantine people exposed to the virus its called for more consistency in enforcing self isolation measures ireland is reactivating its highest level of her struction zz from wednesday on words bars and restaurants will only be able to serve take away and people will have to stay within 5 kilometers of their home for all but essential purposes schools however are allowed to stay open india has posted its lowest daily number of cases in nearly 3 months infections have been decreasing since a peak in september. While berlin is famous for its nightlife especially the club scene that all came to a grinding halt of course earlier this year due to the coronavirus pandemic nightclubs remain closed now the citys government has tried to impose an 11 pm closing time on all bars and restaurants some bar owners have gone to court they have won so they are allowed to remain open for now weve been out and about to see what has been happening to the party metropolis in berlin. But i mean once you have nightlife capital has quietened down since the beginning of the pandemic doors a closed dance rules empty club as a not the only ones affected onus face a whole winter without business many believe the citys Cultural Landscape will be the poorer. One script as had time to hear us there are 2 priorities during respond or the 1st safe people 2nd safe club culture leave experience what its like to dance together to amazing music to feel free and safe within a friendly crowd. You know people often function better in a poll about honesty and then in the mainstream society. You realize that club culture is an expression of how society should be different and better because their stuff. But it is now known as a haven for artists and musicians in particular theyve been especially hard hit professionally and in that every day that i. Turn to it. The worst. Of. The measures have put a damper on socialising in the capital and theyre a big challenge for the restaurant and bar owners that a fee and limits on Opening Times and alcohol sales will threaten their livelihoods once again. Escaped antigun there are some things that we as a Hospitality Branch find out seemingly necessary up on social distancing wearing a mask those are really Good Measures in some ways making sure the bars are not crowded but what we dont understand is why for months the gastronomy and nightlife sector has been saddled with all the blame youve been treated as culprits and thats not the case because you are just it out of a situation. The water going customers team have had to adapt some though willing to make sacrifices find images to fix and i had to think about what i was about to do more but i dont think it changed the number of people