So we won’t prosecute the kids? What’s the point of the new regulations then?

This week started off with the fear that our holiday plans may be curtailed if provincial borders were shut down but fortunately, the regulations that eventually did come on Monday night seemed measured and focused.

They were a response to the increase in Covid-19 cases but in the preceding weeks we had media and officials lamenting parties, celebrations and most notorious, matric Rage as being super-spreader events. Credit where it’s due as Rage organisers canned the further events but at that point, the damage was already done and months of lockdown already undone.

But what people don’t realise is that all this time, we’ve been at level 1 since September, and even in level 1, the limitations on events and gatherings are quite precise. Despite this I’m sure we’ve all experienced, or at least heard stories of, gatherings with few people wearing masks, venues filled to the brim and really desperate attempts to recoup the lost income from the previous five months of the year.

Stories of street parties, club infections, and the like have filled the feed and yet, it seems nobody is taken to task about it.

ALSO READ: NDZ gazettes regulations on booze sales and super-spreader events

So what’s the point of the new regulations? At a push, they’ll at least empower police to kick people off beaches, but that requires the cops to be there in the first place. So yes, main beach Durban will certainly have police presence but the smaller getaways in the Eastern Cape? Let’s not even delve into the potential outcry of racial inequality when the photos of new year’s beach parties at Kenton-on-Sea get leaked.

If people adhere to the regulations then great but the reason for the increased regulations is because people weren’t adhering to them in the first place. So this latest attempt has to come with some effect.

Yes, it’s wise to close the beaches and limit interaction. Yes, we should have done more of that throughout level 1. But now, we have to ensure that these are not just words on paper.

Take on the Ragers!

What an introduction to adult life it would be if we scooped up a bunch of privileged 18 year olds and put them through the judicial system. Yes, they may get off with a warning or at the worst, go through the National Institute for Crime Prevention and the Reintegration of Offenders (Nicro) programme and do some community service for their sins, but it would send a clear message that the state is serious about these regulations.

More importantly, it would create a disincentive for a bunch of horny, party hungry, recently liberated young adults to go out, have a jol, and increase the national infection risk.

The flouting of the regulations in this manner is so absurd because it’s not just the kids. Spare a thought for the parents who in some manner allowed them to go, and then return all infected just in time for Christmas with granny.

It just seems that few people even care to abide by the regulations and if/when caught, know they could just walk away.

In terms of punishment, you know what the new regulations this week added? Nothing.

It was always the case that flouting the regulations could get you six months in jail or a fine. It was always the case that you needed to wear a mask at public gatherings. It was always the case that indoor public gatherings were capped. It was always the case that, persons attending a public gathering must “maintain a distance of least one and a half metres from each other”. I’m not certain if you’ve seen a bunch of drunkards on a dance floor but that’s something almost impossible to maintain.

ALSO READ: Curfews, closed beaches and limited alcohol sales – should you cancel your holiday?

So, if the cops are only going to bust one gathering in every few thousand, and I want to party, and the chances I’ll walk away with a slap on the wrist in the unlikely event I’m busted, while bars are so desperate for my daddy’s/NSFAS money that they’ll do what they can to get the party going, I’ll be taking my chances every night of the week.

So to stop all this super spreading, something needs to happen to make those chances less appealing, and adding a couple more limitations on a piece of paper ain’t exactly going to do the trick. At some point, you actually need to get your hands dirty and use the power afforded on that piece of paper.

Richard Anthony Chemaly, entertainment attorney, radio broadcaster and lecturer of communication ethics.

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