Protesters across Europe and in Poland gathered over the weekend to express their solidarity with ongoing demonstrations in the US against systemic racism and police brutality.
Several hundred protesters gathered in front of the US embassy in Warsaw on Saturday, with participants chanting to “end racism and violence” while holding banners reading “Black Lives Matter”, “no freedom till we’re equal”, and “racism must end now.”
A similarly peaceful demonstration took place in Gdańsk on Saturday, with around 200 protestors gathering in front of the Gdańsk Town Hall, where they listened to speeches, observed a symbolic 9-minute period of silence, and later marched down Długa Street.
The campaign in Gdańsk was organized by two high school graduates, Weronika Brylowska and Dagmara Szymańska, who met online via social media. According to the organizers, the protest was not political and was meant to demonstrate solidarity with similar protests in the US as well as highlight the need to fight against discrimination in Poland.
Source: Dziennik Bałtycki, Radio Poland
Over a quarter of a million (272,000) students across Poland are sitting down to their school-leaving exams (matura) today, with additional precautions in place due to the ongoing threat of COVID-19.
In Trójmiasto, as in other parts of Poland, students sat down at 9:00 this morning to begin a written test in the Polish language, one of the three obligatory exams for high school graduates. Other requirements include written exams in a foreign language, mathematics at a basic level, and at least one additional exam in a course of the student’s choosing.
As part of the precautions this year, only healthy students without signs of COVID-19 are allowed to sit the exams, and students will have to have their mouths and noses covered when they arrive at school. Students will be allowed to take off their masks once seated, with testing areas arranged so that each student is at least one-and-a-half meters apart.
Per guidelines established by SANEPID and the Ministry of National Education, the matura exams will continue to the end of the month, with the eighth-grade leaving exam scheduled for June 16-18. Additional professional qualifying exams and a small number of oral exams are also scheduled for later this month.
Source: Radio Gdańsk, Radio Poland
In an interview on Saturday with private radio broadcaster RMF FM, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki announced that Poland would be reopening its border with Lithuania next week.
Morawiecki’s announcement came after the Lithuanian government announced on Friday that the country would open its borders to residents of other Baltic countries. As reported by Polish Radio’s IAR news agency, Lithuanian Prime Minister Saulius Skvernelis also expressed his approval that “our strategic partner Poland will join the group of countries which have the pandemic under control.”
According to Morawiecki, Poland’s borders with other European countries are still under discussion; Poland’s border restrictions are set to expire June 12.
Nearly 27,000 (26,780) people in Poland have tested positive for COVID-19 as of this morning; of those cases over 1,000 (1,161) have passed away while over 13,000 have recovered.
Source: Radio Poland
As of this weekend, culture and entertainment venues, along with fitness centers and indoor sports facilities, are allowed to restart their operations, as Poland continues to ease lockdown restrictions previously put in place to combat the coronavirus pandemic.
Cinemas, theaters, and fitness centers are allowed to reopen as of June 6 under special regulations limiting the number of customers on-site. All venues are required to provide hand disinfectant for patrons, while cinema and theatre audiences must keep their mouths and noses covered with a mask.
The move follows the lifting of previous restrictions, including wearing face masks in public, allowing public gatherings of up to 150 people, and increasing the number of people allowed to gather in places such as retail outlets, restaurants, and churches. Football matches resumed last month behind closed doors, with Polish football stadiums set to reopen to spectators starting June 19.
Source: Radio Poland
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Weather
Monday will be rainy and cool throughout the day with a strong breeze coming from the north. Temperatures will peak around a high of 14°C, or 55°F, dropping to a low of 9°C or 48°F overnight. Sunny skies are expected to return tomorrow with rain returning later in the week.
Elizabeth Peck/ako
