Czechia from world envy to one of the hardest-hit
My humble take based on limited materials in English:
Masking works if people want it and mandate makes little difference or may be even counterproductive.
1/5

Few doubt Czechia’s spring success resulted from their early swift campaign of masking. Most importantly, it was like a grassroots campaign with a sense of shared commitment to beat a virus which lethality was overestimated then. They earned back their normal life in June.
2/5

They took a victory lap and essentially stopped face-covering in the summer that helped keep the virus at bay by drastically reducing indoor activities, the primary transmission path.
3/5 https://www.timesofisrael.com/i-got-carried-away-czech-pm-regrets-lifting-virus-measures/

When increased indoor activities in the fall triggered a corona surge, politics entered the heath arena like many other countries. Some mitigations were held until after the Oct election. Many, knowing the limited fatalities for the young and healthy, resist masking.
4/5

Despite the government’s mandate, even its health minister broke the rule, let alone many others. Its corona fatalities shot from the bottom to #6 in the world. They even have rare double-waves.
5/5