Czech singer who intentionally got COVID-19, dies of illness

A folk singer from the Czech Republic died when she intentionally caught coronavirus. Hana Horka, 57, was not vaccinated and said she was getting better after she tested positive for the virus. She died two days later.

Jan Rek, her son, said she got sick on purpose when he and his father got the virus so she could get a recovery permit to go to certain places.

On Wednesday, the Czech Republic set a new record for the number of Covid-19 cases it had.

Mr Rek and his father were both properly vaccinated when they got Covid over the holidays, but they both got sick. This is what happened: It was his mother who didn't stay away from them but chose to get the virus herself.

"Because we were positive, she should have been apart from us for a week. She was, however, with us all the time, "her son added.

Many social and cultural places in the Czech Republic, like theatres, bars, and cafes, ask for proof that you have been vaccinated against or have recently recovered from the virus.

His mother was a member of Asonance, one of the oldest Czech folk groups. Rek said that she had planned to catch Covid so that she would be able to move more freely to some places that required either vaccine or recovery proof for entry.

She said on social media two days before she died that she was getting better, "Now there will be theatre, a sauna, and a show."

Horka said she felt better on the morning of the day she died. She was getting ready to go for a walk. There was a pain in her back, so she went into her bedroom to lay down.

"It was over in about 10 minutes," her son told her. "She choked to death."

However, his mother was not vaccinated and believed all the anti-vax claims.

"She thought that catching Covid was a better idea than getting vaccinated. As far as I know, we would not be microchipped or anything like that, "he said.

"There is no point in talking about getting vaccinated with her because she would get too emotional," added her son