Closure of coronavirus in South Africa: is the alcohol ban working?

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Banning the sale and transport of alcohol during the closure of the coronavirus in South Africa has emptied hospital beds, ruined businesses, sparked violence and political strife, and has sparked great interest in pineapples, writes BBC Andrew Harding from Johannesburg.

The idea was simple.

Ban all alcoholic beverages and avoid drunken fights, reduce domestic violence, stop drunk driving, and eliminate excessive alcohol consumption during the weekend, so prevalent in South Africa. Police, doctors and analysts conservatively estimate that alcohol is involved or responsible for at least 40% of all emergency hospital admissions.

In normal times, some 34,000 trauma cases reach emergency departments in South Africa each week.

But since the national blockade went into effect last month to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, that number has plummeted, dramatically, by about two-thirds, to about 12,000 admissions.

“It is a significant impact,” said Professor Charles Parry, with some underestimation.

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He has been shaping the extent to which alcohol prohibition has been responsible for the decline in those numbers for the South African Medical Research Council.

“If we end the alcohol sales ban, we will see that around 5,000 alcohol admissions in trauma units will return to the system [each week]”he predicted.

Anger in some sectors

The fact that those additional 5,000 hospital beds are now empty could soon prove invaluable if the pandemic, which has been staggeringly sustained here for several weeks, begins to spread exponentially again, as government advisers predict.

But medical experts, while urging the government to uphold the alcohol ban, also point out that excessive alcohol consumption weakens the immune system and may have a particular effect on respiratory conditions.

“Covid-19 will have a more severe impact on heavy drinkers … and in South Africa many people live in overcrowded conditions.”

“So alcohol sales … can increase community transmission [as people often drink socially]… and we are likely to see an increase in gender-based violence and harm to children, “said Professor Parry.

But how do you enforce such an unprecedented and draconian crackdown for five weeks, or possibly more, if the South African blockade, which will end on April 30, is once again extended?

The man responsible for monitoring the new ban has sparked anger in some quarters, apparently encouraging security forces to take tough and potentially illegal measures against those trapped who break the rules.

There have already been numerous troubling examples, including the alleged beating to death of a man caught drinking in his own yard.

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Police Minister Bheki Cele, known for his abrasive language and enthusiasm for the alcohol ban, recently warned that his forces “would destroy the infrastructure where liquor is sold.”

“It is deeply troubling when there are high-ranking political leaders who encourage police officers to use violence or force, or violate the law. It appears that the police minister has become dishonest,” said Gareth Newham, an expert on crimes of the South African Security Institute. Studies.

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South Africa’s alcohol industry initially tried to challenge the ban in court, arguing that it was unconstitutional and was introduced without consultation. Since then it has regressed.

But while many in the industry recognize the importance of supporting national efforts to combat the virus, there is frustration about a “one-size-fits-all” approach that is causing significant harm to many companies.

“It doesn’t look good at all,” said Apiwe Nxusani-Mawela, the country’s first black brewery owner and president of the South African Beer Association, who fears her small business will collapse if the ban continues for much longer. .

“The arguments against lifting the ban make sense. Many people are unemployed and use alcohol as a drug to escape,” he acknowledged, but said that a more sophisticated approach, perhaps allowing limited alcohol sales, could save his industry from collapse.

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“It could have ended the game for us,” agreed Nick Smith, an American who owns a craft brewery outside Cape Town.

“This one size fits all rule is having a big impact on smaller companies like ours,” added Smith.

South Africa’s official opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), which is in favor of a “smart shutdown model” that would allow people to buy alcohol for a few hours each day, echoes that argument.

But another party, the radical Freedom Freedom Fighters (EFF), called the district attorney’s proposal “murderous” and “racist,” as the current ban appears to have the most positive impact on health in poorer communities, in largely black.

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Many people have compared South Africa’s ban to the famous decade-long American crackdown that began in 1920 in response to the campaign by religious and moral groups, and which Hollywood immortalized in movies like Some Like It Hot and The Untouchables.

Like famous Chicago gangster Al Capone, there is concern that the alcohol ban could bring the sector into the hands of criminals who already control a lucrative part of South Africa’s cigarette industry.

“The longer the blockade lasts, the more criminal networks will be able to strengthen their ability to sell and distribute alcohol,” confirmed Gareth Newham, warning that the government was already losing a fortune in taxes due to the ban.

The ban has certainly taken advantage of deep underground currents here in South Africa, a country with a history of apartheid where black citizens were once prohibited from drinking in public, and some workers were even paid in alcohol, causing major social problems. .

“We South Africans do not have a good relationship with alcohol. Over the years, it has gotten out of control to some degree,” said Ms Nxusani-Mawela.

But as things stand, one aspect of the ban seems to unite people from different walks of life. It has created a new enthusiasm for homebrewing, which has always been a strong element in rural communities.

The more traditional pineapple, corn and sorghum beer videos and recipes known as “umqombothi” are now widely promoted on social media, along with warnings that such drinks, if improperly prepared, could prove dangerous.