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| - The French revelled in a return to cafes Tuesday as Europe emerges from its darkest days of the coronavirus pandemic, whose focus has shifted to Latin America where an infection surge is inundating fragile healthcare systems. The virus has claimed more than 375,500 lives and infected more than 6.2 million in its tear around the globe, upending ordinary and economic life in dramatic ways since it first emerged in China late last year. After suffering some of the highest human losses, Europe and the United States are now crawling out of confinement in a bid to soften the blow of a looming recession. In a symbolic victory in the French capital, Parisians reclaimed the beloved morning rituals at outdoor cafe tables that were allowed to sprawl across pavement to accommodate social distancing measures. "Coffee on a terrace, that's Paris!," said Martine Depagniat, wearing a beige face mask at the Cafe de la Comedie in the city's centre. "I think people really need a return to normal, even though there's still a bit of nervousness," she added. Elsewhere in France, bars and restaurants were permitted to go a step further and allow customers to sit inside, while beaches and weddings were also back in business. The excitement was visible in western Nantes where customers lined up to eat at the restaurant La Prison du Bouffay at one minute past midnight. Yet the country, which has suffered the world's fifth highest toll with nearly 29,000 deaths from the virus, still faces tough times ahead with the economy expected to shrink by 11 percent this year due to the pandemic. A similar story is playing out elsewhere on the continent where schools, swimming pools, pubs and tourist sites are steadily reopening to ease the economic pain of their lockdowns, despite fears of a second wave of infections. Russia, where deaths passed the 5,000 mark on Tuesday, announced a $72 billion recovery plan to boost employment, incomes and economic growth over the next two years to address the fallout of the pandemic. In the UK, one of the last European countries to start easing stay-at-home restrictions, British MPs were set to return to parliament in person after ending a virtual system. And in the sporting world, Formula One organisers announced an eight-race schedule for Europe starting in July, though fans are not expected to join at the start. On the other side of the Atlantic, Latin American countries are still facing an upward curve of infections, with cases surging particularly high in Brazil, which has logged the fourth highest number of deaths worldwide. The region has detected more than one million cases and recorded over 52,000 deaths, more than half of which are in Brazil, according to an AFP tally. The World Health Organization has warned the region's healthcare systems could be overwhelmed by the influx of patients, with Peru, Chile and Mexico also seeing high daily increases in infections. Yet Rio de Janeiro will start gradually easing lockdown measures Tuesday, the Brazilian city's mayor said, beginning with the reopening of places of worship and water sports. Mexico also began relaxing restrictions, reactivating the automotive industry, mining and construction even as the country recorded more than 10,000 virus deaths. Meanwhile, the United States still leads the world with more than 105,000 deaths from COVID-19, though its daily tolls are no longer on a steep incline. The crisis there has recently been overshadowed by anti-racism protests that have erupted across the country in response to police killings of black Americans. While many US states had started relaxing virus measures, several major cities have imposed curfews in the face of the protests, which have turned violent in some zones. In Wuhan, the Chinese city where the virus first erupted in December, officials reported finding only some 300 positive cases after testing almost 10 million people over the past two weeks. "These numbers show that Wuhan is now the safest city," said Feng Zijian, deputy director of China's national Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Elsewhere in Asia, infections have similarly slowed to a trickle in many countries though restrictions on mass gatherings remain. Hong Kong's annual candlelight vigil for those killed in China's 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown has been banned for the first time due to COVID-19 concerns. Indonesia pulled out of the annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca over coronavirus fears, the religious affairs ministry said Tuesday, removing the largest contingent of worshippers. And in New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern criticised protesters demonstrating in support of America's Black Lives Matter gatherings for flouting social distancing rules when the country is on the verge of eliminating the virus. Students wearing face masks returned to schools in Singapore and some workplaces reopened as restrictions were eased Tuesday in the Asian city-state. But there was alarm from Bangladesh, where an official said a 71-year-old became the first Rohingya refugee to die of the virus in camps for those fleeing Myanmar. The man was among at least 29 Rohingya to test positive in the shelters, which are home to nearly one million people. burs-ssm/jv
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