Cinemas, museums, gyms and galleries are among industries that will have to shut down until 11 July as the country enters 14 days of Adjusted Alert Level 4 Lockdown regulations.

This much is confirmed in a Government Gazette signed by Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma.

Gatherings at cinemas, theatres, gyms, fitness centres, conferencing, exhibitions and entertainment centres will not be operational during this period. After 11 July, the provision will be reviewed.

Above this, gatherings at beaches, parks and dams will also be prohibited during this period.

While restaurants, hotels, lodges, bed and breakfasts, timeshare facilities, resorts and guest houses would operate, they would also do so at 50% capacity of the available rooms for accommodation. Patrons, read the regulations, are expected to observe distances of at least 1.5 metres from each other when in common spaces.

“Restaurants and other in-house dining facilities may only operate for off-sale consumption of food and non-alcoholic beverages,” read the regulations.

Owners and managers of establishments listed in the regulations are urged to ensure compliance.

Failure to do so, the regulations state, “commits an offence and is, on conviction, liable to a fine or imprisonment for a period not exceeding six months or to both such fine and imprisonment”.

“Any person who attends an establishment for in-house services, and who knows or ought to have known or suspected such attendance is prohibited, commits an offence and is, on conviction, liable to a fine or imprisonment for a period not exceeding six months or to both.”   

Source: South African Government News Agency