Uruguay wedding: Covid protocol dance ban led to bribe attempts, theft and threats

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The bride and groom, some relatives and guests were not vaccinated. In total, 22 people attended the celebration. As a result, the venue in the city of Montevideo advised them that the dance could not be held as it did not comply with the protocol in force due to the health emergency.

But, according to the complaint, “the groom tried to bribe the owner of the venue with $8,000″ (a little less than US$200) to allow the guests to dance. The statement says that, in addition to the groom, some other guests made threats for the same reason.

“More than a dozen guests began to inappropriately demand to dance and, under threats of shaming on social networks and some claiming to belong to the police, began to pound on tables, jumping and chanting, in the worst form,” the statement said.

CUSFE pointed out that “after the party started, the groom and some guests surrounded the person in charge of the venue to threaten him into letting them dance, which was denied, given that the bride and groom had been clearly advised that there could be no dancing with non-vaccinated people, in compliance with the protocols.”

The venue owner called the Montevideo City Hall’s Department of Public Shows to request inspection personnel and was told to call the police.

According to the statement, “minutes later a patrol car arrived with two officers who also very kindly told us that they could not do anything, that it was a matter for the IMM (Municipality of Montevideo) and MSP (Ministry of Public Health).”

He further stated that some of the guests claimed to belong to the police and pressured the officers, trying “at all times to hinder their work, stating that they had already called their superiors.”

The statement also clarified that, in addition to insulting the venue staff, there were decorative objects missing, disarray, damage and waste of food and drink in an unusual and malicious manner.

At the end of the party, “the bride and groom refused to pay the balance owed, which led to new incidents that resulted in a new call to the police,” thus prompting a complaint to be filed.

As a result of these incidents, CUSFE said that as party and event organizers, venue owners are “helpless with respect to national and departmental authorities,” forcing them to be “supervisors of provisions drafted by both the MSP and IMM, when asked to intervene.”

The Association added that its members are exposed to “people like these, who do not want to take responsibility for their decisions when choosing against vaccination.”

Signed by CASFU director Daniel Serrato, the statement says that Montevideo Municipality officials, the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Public Health will be invited to an “urgent meeting.”

WHY IS DANCING BANNED?

Last March 26, the Ministry of Public Health updated its restrictions for holding parties and events in the framework of Covid-19 in Uruguay.

The capacity limits allow 100% of the public in open spaces and a maximum of 80% in enclosed areas for venues attended only by immunized people. In the case of mixed attendance, vaccinated and non-vaccinated persons, up to 70% capacity is allowed in open spaces and up to 65% in enclosed areas.

The most important modification concerned the duration of events. Prior to the update, events longer than 2 hours were considered high or very high health risk. Events lasting between 1 and 2 hours were considered moderate risk. The optimal scenario was 1-hour events, where risk was low. Currently, extending events up to 7 hours is considered appropriate.

In events with dancing, “what has been established remains in force insofar as only parties or events with the exclusive attendance of fully immunized people are allowed. In addition, an extension of up to 120 minutes is considered appropriate in venues with a carbon dioxide (CO2) gas level meter, with pauses of at least 20 minutes between blocks, without limiting the extension of the latter,” the Ministry of Public Health stated.

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