Children aged 12, 13, and 14 have recently been fined in Southeast Brabant. They were not complying with the measures put in force to curb the coronavirus outbreak. For 12 to 17-year-olds, the fine is €95. For adults, it is €390.
“I hate to have to admit this,” Eindhoven’s Mayor, John Jorritsma, said on Thursday night in the TV show, Op1. He participated in the show as the mayor and as the Southeast Brabant’s Safety Council’s chairman. Jorritsma also said a thousand warnings have already been issued for violations.
He wondered how the punished children would pay the fines ‘from their savings’. The mayor of Eindhoven did not say what exactly these culprits had done wrong. They broke the rules, more than once, because one is fined only when caught a second time.
Jorritsma added that ‘there is a huge decrease in daily crime taking place in the large city’. According to him, this is mainly because hospitality and entertainment businesses are closed. “What you see now is those people who are loitering at supermarkets. They want attention or jump the queue.”
Inconsiderate
“They do not even consider viral infections or are spitting at cops. Or like the man who was admitted to Catharina Hospital. He thought he was not getting enough attention from the medical staff. He then started spitting at them.”
“I am pleased that public prosecutors and the police are being so strict. As far as I am concerned, these people need to be thoroughly punished. The Public Prosecutor’s Office is open to that. The corona crisis does mean fewer cases are brought to court. But these people can still be brought to trial and receive severe punishments.”
In Brabant, the most severe sentence for someone who had spit on an official and shouted ‘Corona!’ was eight weeks’ imprisonment and two weeks’ probation. Most offenders get off with two weeks’ imprisonment. Elsewhere in the country, a so-called corona spitter has received a three-month jail sentence.
Source: omroepbrabant.nl
Translator: Chaitali Sengupta, who gives Inburgering lessons in Meerhoven. Click here for more info.
Editor: Melinda Walraven
