For the Czech government, life doesn't have the same value this week as it did last week. No longer is it Health First; it's Strong Czechia once again. The key thing now, PM Andrej Babiš said in LN today, is to get the economy going. Many stores will be allowed to reopen today, yet the coronavirus will continue to kill, and the government knows this. Overstating the number of virus-related deaths was a way to scare the population into compliance with the strictest restrictions in Czech history. Now, the government will have an incentive to go in the other direction and to understate the numbers. Cases that are indeed related to the virus might be purposely left out of the statistics. The government won't want to be accused of putting a lower value on life, or of intentionally allowing the spread of such a contagious disease. Remember, on March 13 the cabinet made that a criminal act, punishable by up to eight years in prison. By the way, can a cabinet run the country from jail? [ Czech Republic decree Lidové noviny ]
Glossary of difficult words
compliance - the action or fact of acting in accordance with a wish or command;