Thousands of people demonstrated on Sunday in The Hague against measures imposed to curb the spread of the novel Coronavirus, according to the public NOS channel.
Mayor Johan Remkes had authorised the event, baptised #folievirale (#viruswaanzin), but it was initially supposed to have only a limited number of participants up to 1.30 p.m.
The demonstrators, bearing banners and pamphlets, then went to the Malieveld to stage a sit-in. City police said on Twitter that they repeatedly warned the protesters against the risks and asked them to disperse, but they refused to do so.
Police said they then made arrests on the order of the mayor. The demonstrators began to leave at about 3 p.m. after police deployed a water cannon.
In a separate incident, The Hague police intervened at the Central Train Station to disperse a group of soccer fans. On Saturday, another demonstration was held in the Malieveld, this time in support of the Black Lives Matter movement.
That protest also drew a limited number of people, as announced, NOS reported.
The Brussels Times
