ActionSA ready to take Health Act Regulations to court
14 April 2022
Following the publication of the draft regulations of the National Health Act, ActionSA has given instruction to its legal team to prepare for an urgent High Court review should these regulations be made final in their present form.
The draft regulations relating to the surveillance and the control of notifiable medical conditions were published on 15 March 2022 and have been widely condemned. ActionSA views the contents of the regulations to involve the Minister acting outside of her legal authority and in a manner that is patently unconstitutional.
ActionSA believes the regulations are unconstitutional and involve the Ministers of Health and COGTA granting themselves powers that were never intended in our law or Constitution. Despite the President announcing the end of the National State of Disaster, the regulations allow the Ministers of Health and COGTA to continue infringing upon the sacred constitutional freedoms of South Africans.
Among a long list of issues, the draft regulations are unacceptable for the following reasons:
Permitting government to conduct forced medical examinations, treatment, preventative care, isolation, and quarantine provisions for those infected with any of the conditions listed.
The regulations are not in line with South Africa’s enforcement capabilities. With ambiguous enforcement mechanisms, enforcement will be subject to the whims of individual law enforcement.
The implementation of the Regulations will inevitably lead to unequal treatment before the law, as the consequence of compliance will be less severe for those with resources.
The regulations allow for exemptions from border entry requirements without detailing the specifications for such exemptions, leaving room for preferential treatment.
The regulations do not provide for accountability of decision-makers that use their authority in an arbitrary manner, which creates the opportunity for abuse of power.
The inclusion of Regulation 16M (which explicitly mentions potential future lockdowns and severe restrictions on economic activity) indicates that the government believes that it should exercise its authority to limit economic activity when it feels justified to do so. Not only will the implementation of such restrictions actively damage the livelihoods of South Africans already living under the pressures of high unemployment, but its mere inclusion will further harm investors’ confidence in our country.
The persistence of limitations on gatherings remains in effect, with only 50% of a venue’s maximum capacity allowed at events, regardless of whether such venue is indoors or outdoors.
ActionSA wants to make it unambiguously known that should these regulations be made final after the deadline for public comment on tomorrow, Friday15 April 2022, we will proceed to court on an urgent basis. Our legal team is readying the application in anticipation of having to approach the courts.
We will stand with South Africans against a government that has demonstrated its willingness to curtail the freedoms of South Africans, impose barriers to their economic activity and loot emergency resources with impunity.
Issued by Herman Mashaba, President, ActionSA, 14 April 2022
