PARIS — After weeks of protests, France saw relatively little drama on Monday as it expanded its national experiment with coronavirus mandates and began to require that people show a health pass to sit at cafes, eat at restaurants, board long-distance trains and access many other venues. The tensions were palpable in some moments. A woman at the Gare de Lyon station screamed at safety personnel as her train departed without her, because she lacked a valid pass proving she had been vaccinated, had a previous coronavirus infection or tested negative in the past 72 hours. She was shown the way to the nearest coronavirus testing site and eventually headed in that direction. But at the Gare du Nord, another of the main train stations in Paris, most people appeared to be adapting to the new rules. About a dozen staffers in blue vests were deployed to scan the QR codes on travelers’ phones. Those who could show a valid pass were handed blue wristbands, allowing them to board their trains to the north of France. Loudspeaker announcements reminded travelers that “your health pass will be checked during boarding.” Posters across the reception hall read: “One ticket, one mask, one health pass.”Italy has implemented a similar national health pass, though its version has drawn fewer public protests. Since Friday, people in Italy are required to show documentation before getting access to indoor dining, gyms, theaters and museums. The pass will also be required for long-distance travel and of schoolteachers and university students starting next month. France’s pass received the final green light from the country’s constitutional council only last Thursday, after weeks of public and parliamentary debate. Both in France and in Italy, the majority of the population approves of the new measures, surveys show, and the rules have prompted a surge in bookings for vaccination appointments. But France has had four weekends of mass protests, some of which have turned violent. On Saturday, more than 230,000 people rallied against the measures, according to figures by the Interior Ministry. Opposition has come from across the political and societal spectrum, including from nurses who risk being suspended unless they get vaccinated, as well as far-right activists who may be using the protests as a recruiting ground. In a nod toward its critics, the French government announced minor relaxations of its implementation plan: Negative coronavirus tests will be valid for three days, rather than for only 48 hours. And officials are observing a week’s grace period before violators of the rules will be fined or prosecuted. But the government is not backing down in what amounts to a key leadership test ahead of presidential elections next year. Customers without a valid pass can be fined more than 135 euros, or about $158. Restaurants and other businesses that fail to check that their clients have passes risk being closed by the authorities.
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