EU proposes lifting non-essential travel restrictions for fully vaccinated
03 May 2021
The European Commission on Monday proposed easing restrictions on non-essential travel for visitors who have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
Why it matters: The recommendation could be adopted by the European Union's 27 member states as early as May 5, paving the way for the return of summer travel to one of the world's most popular tourism destinations.
- The Commission is also proposing expanding the list of countries from which non-essential travel is permitted, regardless of vaccination status, based on the state of each country's outbreak. Travelers could still be subject to testing and/or quarantine restrictions.
- The proposal includes the right to exercise an "emergency brake" option to suspend travel in order to protect against the risk of contagious new virus variants, which have led to massive outbreaks in countries like India.
Between the lines: The EU is currently working to implement a "Digital Green Certificate," referred to by many as a "vaccine passport," that would provide a standard of proof that travelers have been vaccinated, tested negative for COVID-19, or have recovered from COVID-19.
- Until the Digital Green Certificate is operational, member states will be permitted to make their own determinations on how to evaluate vaccination status from outside travelers.
- The U.S. is being closely consulted on the European passport, so any future American system will likely use similar protocols.
Via European Commission
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.