Chairperson, I agree with Mr Fritz that indeed it becomes even more difficult to manage an outbreak of a disease in the situation in which we find ourselves at the Department of Correctional Services. Obviously, there are challenges with overcrowding and I accept that. But overcrowding has nothing to do with the outbreak of measles right now.
I think we are all aware there is an outbreak of measles in the country, particularly in Gauteng. What is of interest is that the areas where we have this outbreak are the centres where we keep our awaiting-trial detainees. This is a highly mobile community. These are people who go in and out of the courts and then go back to the centres. So, one would expect that these people would carry whatever virus or pandemic is out in the communities from where they come, into the detention centres. That is the one matter.
Secondly, we are trying very hard to manage a very difficult situation. We all know that measles kills; it's a viral infection and it does kill. But, for now, of the 6 000 awaiting-trial detainees, only 58 are affected. Those who are affected have been quarantined. They have been put in isolation so that there is no further spread of the disease.
We have also put measures in place to ensure that those awaiting-trial detainees do not appear in court this week. Obviously, there is a concern that this is going to lead to a backlog, but, in the interests of public health, we had to make sure that we kept them in one place. We are keeping them in isolation so that they don't interact with members of the public. Thank you.