OPINION: This pandemic presents uncharted waters to every citizen!
By Moeketsi Monaheng
Minister Zweli Mkhize and the department of health released interesting statistics on the 13th of April 2020 that show the trends of Covid-19 cases in different hard hit countries. These graphs paint an interesting picture where developed countries including USA, Spain, Italy, Germany and France are still battling with the virus and the number of new infections are still growing. What is most interesting is the fact that China and South Korea are now showing signs of flattening the curve. South Korea flattened the curve before it hit the 10 000 cases mark while China started to flatten just before they hit the 100 000 cases mark. South Africa, the country with a mixed economy, is just over 2000 mark since the 09th April and the curve still shows the signs of growing steadily. The graph however shows that the country’s new cases were highest, with just under 200 cases a day, on the 25th March, just before the president declared the lockdown. It then subsided sharply to under 50 cases a day on the 30th March.
Lockdown has had different results in different countries. India enforced its lockdown in March and it was expected to last for 21 days. China, seen as an effective model, implemented a 49 days lockdown. Wuhan, the first city in China where the outbreak was identified in December 2019, was overwhelmed with multitudes of new cases on a daily basis. This same city and its surroundings have had no new cases reported by Chinese authorities. This is the city with the population of more than 11 million people. No travel in or out of the city was allowed. Public transport was completely suspended and no cars traversed the roads of the city. All shops except for food and medicine shops, were closed and special permits were given to vehicles that needed to be on the road. At the apex of Wuhan lockdown controls in some areas where residents were barred from leaving houses, officials would visit homes door to door undertaking health checks and isolating persons who were ill. This allegedly led to the death of a disabled boy who was left without proper care when his family members were forced into isolation. Less than two months later people were being allowed back into the streets of Wuhan.
The Prime Minister of India ordered a 21 days lockdown on the 25th March 2020. This order was banning people from stepping out of their homes. All social, political, sports, entertainment, academic, cultural, and religious activities were prohibited and places of worship were closed. The lockdown has been extended until the 3rd of May with conditional relaxation after the 20th April in areas where the virus spread has been contained or prevented. As the lockdown was enforced, scores of migrant workers travelled back to their native villages. Relief camps were set up for workers travelling to their villages and the government also directed that landlords should not demand rent during the period of lockdown and wages should be paid to workers without any deductions. People were however seen breaching the lockdown. Social distancing regulation was not followed and people continued to crowd at the vegetable markets in some places. Arrests of people breaching the lockdown where people gathered at a mosque, continued to happen. Policemen were attacked when people assembled at temples in West Bengal to celebrate Ram Navami. Events continued to be organised and priests were arrested for gathering people in churches.
Just a week into South Africa’s Covid-19 lockdown, commentators were already identifying signs that law enforcement’s heavy hand ferments circumstances for social upheaval. Recent deaths of citizens in Alexandra, Vosloorus and other parts of the country, assaults happening in areas like Sebokeng, arrest of Makause Covid-19 leader, extortions on Foreign national business owners, and confiscation of informal traders products can be mentioned as signs that the state may be unwittingly creating these[] ‘’circumstances’’ with the hardline approach in enforcing shutdown.
Should an ordinary South African be worried? Activists documenting Ivory park experiences of Covid-19 argue that we should. This pandemic presents unchartered waters to every citizen. For SANDF, the pandemic arrived while the scores of Reservists were making salient calls for their conditions to be considered by the minister. To be ‘’called up’’ takes a lot of trouble on their side. They have to bribe their way in through different horrific ways. Sexual favours, extortions and unbelievable demands are key tools which seniors use on the young reservists hungry for ‘’Call up’’.
For SAPS, the department is seen as the most corrupt in the country. Its resource allocation plan has been exposed by civil society as terrible. The national leadership is like the rolling stone which gathers no moss.
For the citizenry, especially in Ivory park which is one of the top 10 high ranking murder rate, most of constitutional imperatives. The excessive use of force by SAPS, SANDF and metro police services is experienced on all facets. #BoMyFriend will tell you how much their stores were ransacked by security officers without search warrants looking for traces of cigarette sales. Some of their asylum documents were confiscated illegally. Street traders will tell you about the confusion they experience with their goods being confiscated by metropolitan police. This happens while the office giving them temporary trading permits has suspended operations in Johannesburg. All these circumstances ferment conditions for social upheaval.
The confusion created conditions where rogue emergency workers can go on the wild spree of night rides torturing residents who happen to be on the street. Unfortunately for a man in Ivory Park, he lost control of the car he was driving and the car got stuck in the local high school Palisade fence. The emergency service official was saved by the police van which was around, otherwise residents were going to burn him alive while stuck in that sedan.
One would therefore conclude by urging readers to read more on how China’s lockdown seems to have yielded positive results while other BRICS partners seem to be struggling. I feel inclined to criticise the knee jerk response trajectory which most civil society are lured into. Food distribution without monitoring and protecting constitutional imperatives for citizenry is not enough.
Moeketsi Monaheng is the Gauteng Community Organiser based in Ivory Park. This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Right2Know Campaign
