South Africa lifted its ban on the sale of alcohol and cigarettes on Tuesday when the country softened the measures against coronaviruses in two.
The sale of cigarettes, tobacco and alcohol is prohibited to prevent others from sharing cigarettes and to ease the burden on hospitals to treat alcohol-related injuries.
South Africa is the country most affected by the continent’s pandemic with more than 580,000 reported cases.
Faced with the decline in cases, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced Saturday that restrictions would be loosened, meaning bars will be reopened and a small circle of family members and social visits allowed.
But there is a curfew at 22:00 and a mask is mandatory in public spaces, international borders will remain closed and meetings are still limited to 50 people.
Ramaphosa said the number of new demonstrations matching the day has increased from a peak of more than 12,000 to an average of 5,000 in the following week.
“Looking at the last five months, everything indicates that South Africa has reached the most sensitive point and has moved beyond the inflection point of the curve,” Ramaphosa said.
He called on the South Africans not to let their guard down or “become complacent” despite the “signs of hope.”
The announcements are expected to give a much-needed touch to South Africa’s economic aid, which was in recession before the pandemic and is now expected to contract by more than 6%.
But the main opposition from South Africa’s Democratic Alliance (DA) said the economy had already been “killed.”
“These restrictions were lifted months ago,” DA leader John Steenhuisen said in a statement calling for urgent economic reforms and the return of foreign tourists.
“We are now in the midst of a devastating depression, and all those issues are now making as many South Africans as possible dedicated to painting.”
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