Stricter Lockdown Measures to Resume in South Africa

Stricter lockdown measures to Resume in South Africa.
Stricter lockdown measures to Resume in South Africa.

On 23 March, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced there would be a national lockdown starting on 27 March in South Africa. In the televised address, the President said all South Africans would have to stay at home as a measure to lower the rate of coronavirus infections. At the time, the country had only 554 confirmed cases of infection. The Country announced the lockdown measures as the numbers had increased from a lower figure of 62 cases in just two weeks.

Lockdown Measures in South Africa

The surge raised alarms that a wider outbreak would have strained the country’s already strained healthcare system in the world’s most unequal societies. So the government of South Africa imposed the lockdown in hopes of avoiding the spread of the coronavirus. President Ramaphosa stressed that people would still be allowed to leave their homes during the lockdown. He said all citizens seeking to get medical care or buy food or collect social grants would be free to do so.

But all businesses and shops remained closed during the period of the three-week lockdown. Only pharmacies, banks and laboratories, petrol stations, supermarkets, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, and health workers continued to operate. Meanwhile, soldiers were deployed to patrol the streets in support of the police enforcing the lockdown.

The government hoped to avoid the spread of coronavirus, especially in crowded townships and informal settlements. Most of these areas lack access to clean water. This makes it hard for hand-washing to happen, and applying self-quarantine practices in these areas is challenging. But the decision to have a complete lockdown in South Africa had a considerable impact on people’s livelihoods and the economy.

Restrictions Lifted in South Africa

In August, however, South Africa`s government lifted nearly all restrictions. The coronavirus infections appeared to have peaked in the country. This meant that the country had moved beyond the rate of infection point of the curve and could move to lower restrictions. In a televised address, the President announced lifting restrictions allowing the resumption of economic activities across South Africa.

But since the lifting of restrictions for COVID-19, now the country seems to be experiencing a resurgence of new coronavirus infections. Due to this, President Ramaphosa announced on Thursday that South Africa would return to stricter restrictions. He said that the restrictions would mainly be enforced in hotspot areas like Nelson Mandela Bay. The restrictions would involve limiting days and hours for the sale of alcohol in such areas. Also, a prohibition on gatherings of more than 100 people and alcohol consumption plus a nighttime curfew would be enforced.

President Ramaposa warned that South Africa faces a resurgence of infections in parts of the country. He added that the resurgence could have occurred mainly due to one reason. People no longer strictly adhered to preventive measures like wearing masks and social distancing in public anymore.

So far, the country has seen nearly 3,000 infections daily. The number has increased from about 1,500 average infections daily. If the government doesn’t confront the rise in infections decisively and directly, it could lead to great suffering and death.

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