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By IOL Reporter 
September 23, 2020
Cape Town – South Africans will not be able to celebrate Heritage Day with their usual fervor.
Those who haven’t stocked up on alcohol will have their party tempered by the fact that there will be no alcohol for sale for off-site consumption on a holiday (and weekends) under level 1 lockdown regulations. A curfew from midnight to 4 a.m. will also put a stop to the celebrations.
However, the good news is that you can consume liquor on-site in pubs, bars, taverns and places of hospitality, Police Minister Bheki Cele said during a press conference on Tuesday.
Cele warned, however, that police will be vigilant about restaurants that sell beer as “takeout.”
“I want to remind all business owners who insist on breaking the rules, the long arm of the law will catch up with them and they will lose their operating license,” said Cele.
Cele also reminded the public to remember that while social gatherings such as concerts and live performances are now allowed, nightclubs must remain closed.
The number of people who can attend Heritage Day events will be restricted at level 1. Meetings are allowed as long as the number of people does not exceed 50% of the normal capacity of a venue, up to a maximum of 250 people for indoor meetings and 500 people for outdoor meetings.
While President Cyril Ramaphosa has encouraged South Africans to enjoy the challenge of the Jerusalem dance, people should not get too carried away. Cele urged South Africans to be aware of their neighbors and to be considerate of noise levels.
“You get a lot of complaints about loud and disruptive behavior in people’s homes. This virus is still with us and despite the lifting of restrictions, people must take responsibility for their own lives and that of their loved ones.
Cele assured the South Africans that, despite the country being at the lowest alert level of the national shutdown, “law enforcement will continue to be on high alert.”
The police minister said that since the inception of the lockdown to date, 310,494 people have been arrested and charged with violating the country’s lockdown rules under the Disaster Management Law.
These violations include alcoholic beverages, transportation, cross-border and business-related, he said. The Western Cape had the highest number of arrests with 72,137 charges, followed by Gauteng with 59,000 arrests.
MESS
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