At night in Warsaw it is easier to buy alcohol than medicine. Activists want change
Activists from Miasto Jest Nasze and Porozumienie dla Praga drew attention to the huge number of night alcohol sales outlets in Warsaw. They compared it with 24-hour pharmacies to better understand the situation.
Members of the Miasto Jest Nasze and Porozumienie dla Pragi associations presented the mayor of Warsaw, Rafał Trzaskowski, with the signatures collected in support of a request to conduct public consultations on limiting the sale of alcohol in the capital. Activists propose to introduce a ban in the city from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. It would cover both shops and gas stations. At the same time, the number of sales points would be limited.
Will Warsaw limit night sales of alcohol?
The applicants drew attention to the contrast between liquor stores and night pharmacies. There are almost 3,400 of the former in Warsaw, and 25 of the latter. There are 309 inhabitants per alcohol selling point, while the recommendations of the World Health Organization on this matter are 1,500.
Antonina Wróblewska from Miasto Jest Nasze argued that similar restrictions have already been introduced in other large cities in the country and over 200 communes. In addition to Krakow, Wrocław, Gdańsk and Poznań, there are also smaller centers, such as Grodzisk Mazowiecki and Sopot. – Wherever sales restrictions were introduced, the number of police interventions decreased – she emphasized.
Consultation, report and then sales restriction
The consultations would be partly online and partly stationary. Afterwards, a report would be created, which would be a starting point for further work. – We appeal to district councils and youth district councils to submit requests for this type of consultations to the Mayor of Warsaw – said Jan Mencwel, one of the leaders of MJN.
– A 24-hour alcohol shop was opened near my house a few months ago. Since then, we and our children have been regularly woken up at night by screams, the sounds of breaking glass, and the signals of police roosters. Recently, drunk customers of the store started calling randomly selected premises on intercoms at night. There have been no such incidents before. Nightly alcohol sales significantly reduced our sense of security, peace and comfort, Mencwel said in an interview with TVN Warszawa.
