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Here in South Africa, face masks are mandatory, there's a curfew – and booze and fags are banned

South Africa, alcohol ban
South Africa, alcohol ban

Addressing the nation on Sunday July 12, as Covid-19 infections in South Africa surged, President Cyril Ramaphosa left no time for frantic stockpiling: “In order to conserve hospital capacity... we’ve now decided that the sale, the dispensing and the distribution of alcohol will be suspended with immediate effect.” Even as South African Twitter went into meltdown, there was – amongst the sensible, anyway – an understanding of why this measure is necessary.

Since the first booze ban was partially lifted (sales allowed from Monday to Thursday) at the start of June, hospitals have been hit by a wave of alcohol-related trauma cases, filling beds needed for the increasing number of coronavirus patients. There’s also concern about a rise in gender-based violence, as well as boozy parties where the concept of social distancing goes straight out the window.

The alcohol ban was originally put in place at the start of one of the world’s harshest lockdowns. From the end of March, everyone except essential workers had to stay at home unless they were shopping for groceries, collecting medication or seeking medical attention; no outdoor exercise (even walking the dog), no takeaways, no non-essential shopping or deliveries. The sale of cigarettes was prohibited along with alcohol (the tobacco ban has remained in place).

In May, lockdown level 5 was downgraded to level 4; we could exercise on the streets between 6am and 9am (it was still dark in Cape Town until at least 7am – but I wasn’t complaining; that first run along the Atlantic-facing promenade was wonderful), some shops were allowed to reopen and restaurants could sell takeouts. Pineapple homebrew became the nation’s new favourite beer.

At the start of June, 34,357 cases had been identified, mostly around Cape Town. Level 3 rebooted much of the economy, something South Africans desperately needed by that point, but it also heralded a surge in infections. At the time of writing, there have been 287,796 confirmed cases and 4,172 deaths. It’s thought that cases will peak between the end of July and September, depending on the region.

Table Mountain’s trails reopened at level 3, much to the joy of Cape Town’s hikers and runners. At the first opportunity, I met a friend at the foot of the mountain. We spent the morning running through thick fynbos vegetation, delighting in the proteas about to burst into bloom, the sunbirds flitting around the flowers, that fresh, warm scent. It felt wildly good to be back out there. On Sunday, Ramaphosa announced parks will reopen for exercise as well, which means more people have access to pockets of greenery in the city – a much-needed boost for the mind and body.

Table Mountain - getty
Table Mountain - getty

Some restaurants have opened for socially distanced sit-down meals. Beauticians and tattooists can work again. I had a haircut and immediately lost half a stone.

Officially, we’re still at level 3, but the alcohol ban is one of several tweaks introduced on Sunday, including a 9pm to 4am curfew. Family visits are not allowed, but minibus taxis – in which the majority travel to work – have been told they can operate locally at 100 per cent capacity. Protecting lives as well as livelihoods is an almost impossible balancing act.

Face masks are mandatory in public, but some people have become lax. “Seriously, a cloth mask is not something that’s difficult to get,” a frustrated Ramaphosa scolded on Sunday. “Even your T-shirt... can be put over your nose and your mouth.”

The tourism industry has been on a rollercoaster, as the government flip-flopped all over the place regarding leisure travel within one’s home province; the current ruling is that accommodation should remain closed for leisure tourism, a blow to properties gearing up to welcome locals.

This winter – which also now features rolling blackouts, aka load-shedding – will be a particularly tough one. But collective responsibility will result in a quicker recovery. Hopefully our borders can safely reopen by December or January, so tourists can visit over the summer. We’ll have the chenin chilled – it will never have tasted so damn good.