South Africa’s nationwide ban on alcohol sales during the lockdown period will not be lifted, according to the latest announcement by government’s National Command Council (NCC).

Despite public criticism and even threats of legal action, government has reaffirmed its position on the alcohol ban currently in place to prevent the further spread of COVID-19.

Government keeps lockdown alcohol ban in place

Addressing the media on Thursday afternoon, Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, charged with overseeing government’s response to the outbreak under the Disaster Management Act, revealed that laws would not be amended to allow for the sale of liquor.

Dlamini-Zuma, who was joined by Justice and Correctional Services Minister Ronald Lamola, said that law enforcement operations, conducted by the South African Police Service (SAPS), with support from the National Defence Force (SANDF), would continue to crack down on defiant liquor distributors. Dlamini-Zuma reiterated:

“We are stressing the prohibition of the transport of liquor. The only alcohol that is allowed to be transported, is the one that is used for commercial purposes… for our sanitisers. Liquor that you drink, is not allowed to be exported in the same way that it is not allowed to be sold.”

Police Minister Cele gets his way

Police Minister Bheki Cele, who has vehemently opposed the sale of alcohol during lockdown, citing decreases in violent crimes as a primary reason to keep the ban in place, has recently come under fire for his officers’ heavy-handedness. In addition, Cele has noted, with serious concern, the prevalence of collusion between police officers and unscrupulous liquor peddlers.

In the last week, several police officers have found themselves in court, charged with contravening the stringent liquor laws under the Disaster Management Act.

The rise of the illicit trade as a result of the prohibition of alcohol has been used as an argument for relaxation of the regulations. In addition to the billions of rands lost due to the inability to collect taxes on alcohol and cigarette sales, critics of the prohibition policy argue that normal citizens are being criminalised for their habits, which, until a few weeks ago, were not illegal.

Following Dlamini-Zuma’s announcements, the current regulations impacting the alcohol industry are expected to be officially gazetted and, thereby, extended until the end of the lockdown on 30 April 2020.