Cape Town to review new liquor by-law

The City of Cape Town has commissioned a legal review of its new liquor by-law before any amendments are gazetted.

"Except for a few minor technical adjustments, we don't foresee any major changes to the by-law," says the Speaker, Dirk Smit.

"Cape Town has the highest formal incidence of alcohol and drug abuse of any city in South Africa, and the new by-law constitutes part of the City's strategy to address the scourge of alcohol abuse. With over 3,6 million residents from widely divergent social environments, the City has tried to strike a balance between various interest groups," says Executive Mayor, Alderman Dan Plato.

Research has shown that the reduction of alcohol trading hours has had a positive impact on alcohol abuse.

For example, a study in Diadema near São Paolo in Brazil,found that a new law mandating on-premise consumption outlets to close at 11 pm had the effect of reducing murders by 106 per year, or 30 per 100 000 population. Prior to the new law, most bars traded 24 hours a day.

Studies in Australia and in South Africa have also shown positive effects resulting from cutting back on hours of alcohol sales.

For example, in Tennant Creek in the Australian outback, an aboriginal community group successfully mounted a campaign to close off-premise consumption outlets on the days pay checks arrived and to limit bars on Thursdays and Fridays to opening only after 12 noon. Off-premise consumption sales were limited to between noon and 9 pm on other days. Alcohol-related admissions dropped by 34% and admissions to a womens' shelter dropped by almost half.

In Siyahlala, an informal settlement of around 1 300 dwellings in Nyanga, which had the highest murder statistics in South Africa in 2006/7, a broad-based community initiative was implemented between May 2006 and June 2007.

Over this period, crime figures plummeted from between five and eight murders a month to zero, and between 30 and 38 assault cases a month to between ten and 17. One of the interventions involved getting shebeens to close by 9 pm.

"We want to make absolutely sure that every aspect of the by-law passes legal muster before it is formally gazetted", said Smit.

The by-law was formulated after an extensive two-year public participation process.

Statement issued by Communication Department, City of Cape Town, January 12 2011

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