Boots on the ground: behind SA’s national lockdown

PODCAST | Level 4: Not as free as we had hoped

17 May 2020 - 12:13
By Paige Muller, Graeme Hosken and Alex Patrick
Police and members of SANDF patrolled Setjwetla, an informal settlement, in Alexandra
Image: ALON SKUY Police and members of SANDF patrolled Setjwetla, an informal settlement, in Alexandra

LISTEN TO WHAT HAPPENED OUTSIDE YOUR DOOR:

SA has been in lockdown for over 50 days and one thing is clear: people want their basic freedoms back.

So while the announcement of lockdown level 4 was initially met by cheers, it has also unintentionally made the national lockdown a lot harder to govern. Fluctuating laws and regulations have seen a pushback from the country’s citizens.

In today’s episode we follow SANDF soldiers into Alex, as they try to uphold the newly established curfew, while winning back the trust of the people in the area. We also speak to those pushing back against lockdown regulations that they see as unjust and impractical.

In this short podcast series, we follow Sunday Times reporter Alex Patrick and senior reporter Graeme Hosken, as they track, record and reflect on the real events and people that make up SA’s biggest Covid-19 news stories.

Boots on the ground is a true piece of mobile journalism — all interviews, voices and sound effects have been gathered using nothing but smartphones.