{"id":137380,"date":"2020-12-18T22:06:49","date_gmt":"2020-12-18T19:06:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/frances-macron-blames-his-covid-19-on-negligence-bad-luck\/"},"modified":"2020-12-18T22:06:49","modified_gmt":"2020-12-18T19:06:49","slug":"frances-macron-blames-his-covid-19-on-negligence-bad-luck","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/frances-macron-blames-his-covid-19-on-negligence-bad-luck\/","title":{"rendered":"#France\u2019s Macron blames his COVID-19 on negligence, bad luck"},"content":{"rendered":"

“#France\u2019s Macron blames his COVID-19 on negligence, bad luck<\/strong>”<\/p>\n

\n

PARIS \u2014 French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday blamed his COVID-19 on a combination of negligence and bad luck, urging his compatriots to stay safe as critics called out slip-ups in his behavior to prevent infection, from a close-quarters handshake to repeated big-group meals over the past week.<\/p>\n

In what looked like\u00a0a self-shot video\u00a0<\/a>from the presidential retreat in Versailles where he was isolating, Macron said he was experiencing symptoms that included headaches, fatigue and a dry cough. He promised to give daily updates and be \u201ctotally transparent\u201d about the evolution of his illness.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am doing well,\u201d the 42-year-old French leader said, speaking softly with a bottle of gel on the desk behind him and dressed casually in a turtleneck top. \u201cNormally, there is no reason for it to evolve in a bad way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Macron said his infection \u201cshows that the virus really can touch everyone, because I am very protected and am very careful.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDespite everything I caught this virus \u2014 perhaps, doubtless, a moment of negligence, a moment of bad luck, too,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

A fellow European leader who spent time with Macron at an EU summit last week, Slovak Prime Minister Igor Matovic, tested positive for the virus Friday. Ten other leaders at the EU summit have since tested negative; others either aren\u2019t getting tested or haven\u2019t released results.<\/p>\n

In France, Macron faced criticism for actions that were seen as setting a bad example as the country sees a new uptick in cases and doctors warn families to take precautions this holiday season \u2014 especially at the dinner table.<\/p>\n

Macron usually wears a mask and adheres to social<\/a> distancing rules, and has insisted that his virus strategy is driven by science<\/a>. But he has been captured on camera in recent days violating France\u2019s virus-control guidelines.<\/p>\n

He shook hands and half-embraced the head of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, Angel Gurria, at a meeting Monday. Both were masked, but Macron\u2019s office acknowledged Friday the move was a \u201cmistake.\u201d<\/p>\n

In his video message Friday, the president suggested that his behavior had helped limit the spread of the virus.<\/p>\n

\"French
French President Emmanuel Macron is seen on a screen as he attends by video conference a round table for the National Humanitarian Conference (NHC), taken at the Foreign Ministry in Paris,Thursday, Dec. 17, 2020. <\/figcaption>
AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cHad I not respected the rules, the barrier measures, I would have caught it much faster and, most of all, I would have transmitted it in the preceding hours to many more people,\u201d Macron said.<\/p>\n

He urged people to \u201chold firm\u201d and look after each other during the festive season, warning: \u201cThe virus is picking up, even stronger.\u201d<\/p>\n

Last week, Macron spent two days in intense negotiations at the EU summit in Brussels with the leaders of the other 26 member countries. Video excerpts released by the EU showed the leaders spread out in a circle in a huge meeting room \u2014 Macron, and most of the other leaders, were not masked.<\/p>\n

Macron also hosted or took part in multiple large-group meals in the days before testing positive Thursday, including with members of his centrist party and rival politicians, while French people are currently advised to avoid gatherings larger than six people. His office has been contacting those present for the meals, but told some people sitting far from the president that they were not considered at risk.<\/p>\n

Macron office isn\u2019t providing details of his treatment. He is staying at the presidential residence of La Lanterne in the former royal city of Versailles, tucked in a grove tightly guarded by police.<\/p>\n

\"Police
Police officers guard La Lanterne, a presidential residence in Versailles, outside Paris, Friday, Dec. 18, 2020.<\/figcaption>
AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Macron\u2019s positive test comes as French health authorities are again seeing a rise in infections and are warning of more as French families prepare to get together for Christmas and New Year festivities. France reported another 18,254 new infections Thursday and its death toll is just under 60,000.<\/p>\n

France\u2019s Pasteur Institute released a study Friday suggesting that meal times at home and in public are a major source of contamination. Pasteur epidemiologist Arnaud Fontanet said on France-Inter radio Friday that during the holidays, \u201cwe can see each other, simply not be too numerous, and at critical moments at meals, not too many people at the same table.\u201d<\/p>\n

Macron took a test \u201cas soon as the first symptoms app<\/a>eared\u201d on Thursday morning and will self-isolate for seven days, in line with national health authorities\u2019 recommendations, the presidency said. Macron plans to continue working, and went ahead with a planned speech by videoconference Thursday.<\/p>\n

The French health minister suggested that Macron might have been infected at the EU summit in Brussels last week, but Macron had multiple meetings in Paris as well.<\/p>\n

France had Europe\u2019s first virus case in January, but Macron\u2019s government came under criticism for not having enough masks or tests and not confining the population quickly enough. A strict two-month lockdown brought infections down, and France sent children back to school and their parents back to work.<\/p>\n

But infections surged again this fall so he declared a new, softer lockdown in October aimed at relieving pressure on hospitals. The measures were relaxed slightly this week, though restaurants, tourist sites, gyms and some other facilities remain closed.\n <\/p><\/div>\n