According to Bloomberg, South African President Ramaphosa delivered a televised address on 12 December, giving an update on South Africa's efforts to control the Newcastle pneumonia outbreak and announcing the resumption of a national alcohol ban.
Image from: Global Times
Ramaphosa said South Africa is in the midst of a surge of confirmed cases and is approaching the peak of infection, and we have decided that the sale of alcoholic beverages should be banned immediately in order to ensure the capacity of hospitals to receive patients and for hospitals to have enough beds, rather than allowing those injured by intoxication to occupy them. Ramaphosa added that there is clear evidence that the resumption of alcohol sales has triggered car accidents, violence, and led to increased pressure on hospitals; and that the spread of the virus is further exacerbated by people gathering for drinking binges and not wearing masks.
After the outbreak of the epidemic, South Africa has implemented a three-month ban on alcohol. The first ban has been cancelled for three weeks, and in the serious situation of the continued spread of the epidemic, the South African government had to issue another ban on alcohol, while announcing the extension of the state of national disaster until August 15, and the implementation of curfew again, requiring people to wear masks in public places. According to AFP, South Africa has seen a surge in confirmed cases of the new crown in recent days, with at least 12,000 new cases per day and pressure on epidemic prevention.
