The Department of Correctional Services is reinstating prison visits at all correctional centres following the termination of the National State of Disaster.
THE DEPARTMENT of Correctional Services (DCS) is reinstating prison visits at all correctional centres following the termination of the National State of Disaster.
President Cyril Ramaphosa lifted the National State of Disaster on Monday this week, more than two years after it was first declared in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Department spokesperson Sechaba Mphahlele said DCS reviewed its Covid-19 risk-adjusted strategy following the announcement and it will permit visits for inmates.
Prison visits were limited to two visitors per inmate per month and only one visitor at a time under lockdown Alert Level 1.
Mphahlele said the DCS currently has a total of nine active Covid-19 cases – seven inmates and two officials – and cumulative cases stand at 21,825, with 12,043 officials and 9,782 inmates infected.
“The cumulative recoveries to date stand at 21,459, 11,798 for officials and 9,661 for inmates, translating to a recovery rate of 98.32%.”
The total number of fatalities in DCS remains 357, with 242 officials and 115 inmates deceased.
“A total of 23,220 (58.26%) officials and 111,972 (87.86%) inmates have been vaccinated,” Mphahlele said.
