Pretoria Anti Vaxxers Call for Urgent Court Hearing, Will Not Back Down: 'Enough Is Enough'

• A group of people against the government's vaccine mandate held a picket outside the Pretoria High Court
• Several non-profit organisations, including Free the Children–Save the Nation, protested against children's vaccines
• The NPOs cited that they want the matter against Sahpra to be heard in court before Friday, 17 December

PRETORIA - South Africans who are against the government's move to make the Covid-19 vaccine a mandatory undertaking gathered in the capital city Pretoria to reiterate their unwavering stance on Friday.

Reports on the ground suggest the demonstrations were on a small-scale, seeing only a small group gathered at the entrance of the high court. A large syringe placed at its entrance stood as the more noticeable symbol of the group's conviction against the vaccine.

EWN reported that just over 17 million South African adults are fully vaccinated, out of an adult population of about 40 million, while the emergence of new variants and waves of Covid-19 poses a huge challenge to society at large.

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However, the gathering was organised by a non-profit organisation (NPO) called Free the Children–Save the Nation, along with several other organisations lobbying against children being vaccinated, according to a TimesLIVE report.

Current regulations by the SA Health Products Regulatory Authority (Sahpra) allow all children aged 12 and above to receive a single dose of the Pfizer vaccine. Themba Nkosi, who was among the protesting party, said the organisations would continue to mobilise support over the weekend.

Unwavering stance on children's vaccine

“We'll be making our way to Klerksdorp in the North West on Sunday. We're saying enough is enough. We do not want to be forced into doing something that we don't approve of. So, it cannot be forced onto our kids either,” said Nkosi.

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Further to the sentiments of the protesters, Free the Children-Save the Nation said in a statement that they want the matter to be heard before the court by or before 17 December. However, the NPO said Sahpra was not responding swiftly to the challenge.

The Department of Health, meanwhile, said it will oppose the court case. Public interest law centre Section27 has since applied to be a party to the matter as a friend of the court, citing that schooling is likely to be impacted if children remain unvaccinated.

Vaccine mandates: Lobby groups advise government on policy

Elsewhere, Briefly News recently reported that Business for SA (B4SA) urged President Cyril Ramaphosa to make it compulsory for workplaces to allow access for vaccinated people only.

B4SA's suggestion follows the president's announcement on 28 November that vaccine mandates will soon be implemented at certain venues and for specific activities, following task team meetings.

According to Daily Maverick, the chair of B4SA, Martin Kingston, has said that while ventilation in transport and public spaces is necessary, the government needs to further protect its citizens from the spread of Covid-19.

Source: Briefly News