GA English on Sunday News in Brief from Bonn and the region

BONN/REGION · Demonstration for refugee camp held on Hofgartenwiese, Beethoven anniversary celebrations to be extended, Bonn balloon festival postponed to October, and Astronomy on Tap goes virtual - here is our news in brief on Sunday.

GA English on Sunday: News in Brief from Bonn and the region
Foto: privat

Demonstration with a difference for refugee camp Moira

BONN. As conventional demonstrations are currently not allowed due to the corona pandemic, a group of Bonn citizens on Saturday came up with a novel way of drawing attention to the precarious situation in the Moria refugee camp on the Greek island of Lesbos. In groups of 16, complying with the current corona regulations, the protestors laid down bicycles to form the words ‘Evacuate Moria’ on the Hofgartenwiese in Bonn as a way of marking the plight of the refugees. The participants also called on politicians to work on evacuating the refugee camp as soon as possible. Against the backdrop of the corona pandemic, there is growing concern of a humanitarian disaster in Moria, where hygiene conditions are poor, and people are forced to live in cramped conditions.

The first COVID-19 case was confirmed on Lesbos in mid-March. “If the virus were to break out in the camp, it would be impossible to contain, stop or treat the pandemic within the camp," said Arik Horne at the demonstration in Bonn. After weeks of negotiations at EU level, last weekend Germany brought the first 47 unaccompanied under-16 refugees from the Greek islands to Germany.

(Original text: Michael Wrobel)

Beethoven anniversary celebrations extended

BONN. The corona pandemic has had a substantial impact on culture and the arts. The fact that the pandemic coincides precisely with the Beethoven anniversary is hitting the many musicians, artists, organisers and supports in Bonn and the region particularly hard. Many have been preparing for years to celebrate the 250th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth, and fear that they will not be able to reap the fruits of their labour.

However, following the decision by the supervisory board of the Beethoven Jubiläumsgesellschaft on Friday to extend the celebrations up to September 2021, there is renewed hope that many of the plans will go ahead. “It is very important to us that as many as possible of the projects planned so far can be realised,” explained Günter Winands, Chairman of the Supervisory Board.

Ralf Birkner, commercial director of the Beethoven-Jubiläumsgesellschaft, confirmed that the funding commitments for the current anniversary year 2020 will remain, as well as those for the events which have had to be postponed until 2021. The total funding of 30 million euros available to the Jubiläumsgesellschaft from the federal government, the state, the city of Bonn and the Rhine-Sieg-District will not be affected. The 250th anniversary of Beethoven's baptism on 17 December 2020, which was originally planned to be the finale of the program, will now be one of the highlights.

(Original text: Bernhard Hartmann)

Balloon festival postponed to October

BONN. The twelfth Bonn Balloon Festival, which was due to take place in the Rheinaue park from 10 to 14 June, has been postponed. Following agreement from the city council, the organiser announced that the event will now take place from 2 to 4 October. Almost all 30 balloon teams who were scheduled to participate in the June festival have also confirmed for the new date in October. Ballooning vouchers that have already been purchased will remain valid for the alternative date and will be transferred.

(Original text: buj)

Astronomy on Tap online event on Tuesday

BONN. Astronomy on Tap Bonn is going virtual due to #covid-19 restrictions on public life. Live video podcasts (vodcasts) with a variety of guests will be held at the same time and date as the original events and can be joined from the comfort of your dining table or couch. The next event on Tuesday 28 April at 7pm will include 1) A presentation and discussion by Dr Reihnard Keller on the Effelsberg Telescope located south of Bonn in Germany (in German); 2) a super fun astroquiz by Sandra Unruh and Sven Heydenreich, which you can play online from home; 3) a presentation and discussion by Maude Charmetant, MSc, on the SZ effect (in English); and 4) science and art will be merged via an exciting sonification. Dr Alan Roy will explain how radio data can be turned to sound and will play an opera song made with VLBI data. The link for the event: http://astronomyontap.org/2020/03/aot-bonn-live-vodcast-2-team-guests-astronomy-on-tap-bonn-18/

More information about Astromony on Tap Bonn can be found on Facebook and YouTube (Astronomy on Tap Bonn), Instagram and Twitter (@aotbonn), or send an email to: AoTBonn@gmail.com.

(Translations: Caroline Kusch)

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