Court rejects Barcelona curfew

Barcelona: A Spanish court rejected Monday a request by the regional government of Catalonia to reimpose a virus curfew in Barcelona and dozens of other cities, arguing the measure was "disproportionate" as infections have fallen.

The Catalan government on Friday sought court approval to impose a nightly curfew in municipalities of 20,000 residents or more where infection rates exceed 125 cases per 100,000 inhabitants over a seven-day period.

This would apply to 62 municipalities, including Barcelona and popular beach resorts like Lloret del Mar, Salou and Cambrils. The request came a day after Catalonia’s top court refused to extend a nightly curfew imposed in mid-July in most municipalities in the northeastern region which is home to some 7.8 million people.

The High Court of Justice of Catalonia had given the green light to extend the curfew three times, but it argued the measure was now only justified in 19 municipalities.

On Monday, it ruled that the new request for a curfew that would have applied only to Catalonia’s largest cities "was even more unnecessary and disproportionate". "The control of social interactions is not a measure which should be authorised by the courts," the High Court of Justice of Catalonia argued. Health is the responsibility of regional governments in Spain, but measures affecting freedoms, such as freedom of movement, must be authorised by the courts.