FOR SA halted overreaching health regulations

Facts

‍In April 2022, South Africa’s State of National Disaster ended, and with COVID-19 no longer classified as a life-threatening pandemic, vaccines were accessible to all. For over two years, South Africans had been governed by an executive with unchecked power, sidestepping Parliament and bypassing usual constitutional principles.

However, just as Lockdown ended, the Minister of Health proposed new health regulations categorising COVID-19 as a “Level 2” medical condition, equating it with deadly diseases like cholera and typhoid. These regulations would have allowed the government to declare a medical emergency at any time, granting them even greater powers than during Lockdown.

The implications were deeply concerning. With these unchecked powers, the government could bypass Parliament, impose restrictions without accountability, and silence religious gatherings indefinitely. Churches could be closed, and individuals might be forced into vaccination despite religious objections.

FOR SA took action, launching a major media and communications campaign. The public response was overwhelming, with over 325,000 submissions opposing the harsh and undemocratic regulations.

Without FOR SA's Involvement

‍Without FOR SA’s intervention, the Minister of Health could have declared a “health emergency” at any time for almost any reason—compromising freedoms, closing religious institutions, and bypassing oversight from Parliament and the courts. Instead, this extraordinary public outcry caused the government to delay the proposed regulations indefinitely.