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A law enforcement officer crosses a deserted road in Hillbrow. Photo / Shiraaz Mohamed.
Hillbrow on New Years Eve is usually abuzz with activity, along with projectiles flying from balconies, except when there is a pandemic, as Daily Maverick discovered after spending the night with the SAPS enforcing Lockdown Level 3 regulations.
The streets of Hillbrow were eerily quiet on New Years Eve, save for the occasional homeless person and the flashing lights of patrolling police vehicles.
Revelers watching 2020 stayed safe off the streets and chose to shout festive wishes from their balconies as the clock struck midnight.
Fireworks went off and police armed with shotguns were on alert while guarding residents. Several shots were heard amid the sounds of fireworks. Some streets gave evidence that people had thrown things from their balconies, but overall it was a quiet night in Hillbrow.
“The day is still very young but the boots are still on the ground, and we will continue until dawn.” These were the words of Gauteng Provincial Commissioner, Lieutenant General Elias Mawela, when he addressed members of the media in Hillbrow shortly after midnight.
Mawela commented: “Here at Hillbrow, for me, until now. The mission is accomplished. What did we want to achieve? Peace, harmony and people having fun without being violent. So far we have succeeded. We had no conflict with the people. We want people to be able to continue behaving the way they are behaving so that we do not have unnecessary deaths ”.
Earlier and before the 9 p.m. curfew, Mawela, along with MEC for Community Safety Faith Mazibuko and other high-ranking officials visited roadblocks at Woodmead and Fourways. Operation O Kae Molao / Safer Holiday Season Operation saw several people arrested for violating Covid-19 Level 3 shutdown regulations.
At Woodmead, the cars lined up after being stopped. People and cars were searched for alcohol, contraband and weapons. Some alcohol arrests were made.
Some motorists were unaware of the barricade in front of them as traffic piled up on William Nicol Road in Fourways. Several were curious as to why the traffic had jammed, while others were concerned that being trapped in the barricade meant they would be breaking curfew. Several people were arrested for alcohol-related crimes, while one was arrested for violating the weapons and ammunition law after police found a large amount of ammunition in his boot. By 9:20 p.m., the activity at the roadblock had calmed down and the number of cars on the road had decreased significantly.
Meanwhile, on New Years morning, Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital reported on his Facebook page that for the first time in his history, there were no patients in his trauma rescue area. The post featured four images of empty beds in his trauma unit.
A statement issued by the SAPS, volumes of alcohol were seized in different incidents around Soweto. People who drank in the streets gave up their alcohol and fled when police patrols approached them.
The statement also reported that around 280 arrests were made in the JHB district, which includes JHB North, Hillbrow, JHB Central, and Soweto. Of the 280, 218 people were arrested for violating the Disaster Management Law. Most of the arrests were for violating the curfew, transporting and selling alcohol, and not wearing a mask in a public space.
Other arrests were for drug possession, public drinking, possession of an allegedly stolen vehicle, possession of a hijacked vehicle, and possession of a hijacked trailer. DM
