PRETORIA — The South African National Defence Union (SANDU) is preparing to take legal action against the Department of Defence regarding the substandard quarantine conditions imposed on SANDF troops returning from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The military rights organization argues that the soldiers are being housed in deplorable facilities and strongly questions the legal mandate for their continued isolation.
According to SANDU National Secretary Advocate Pikkie Greeff, the military personnel arrived back in South Africa roughly two weeks ago. Instead of a standard homecoming, they were met with a surprise mandate to enter quarantine. The Department of Defence reportedly justified the measure by citing the ongoing Ebola outbreaks in both the DRC and Uganda, the latter being a transit point for the returning forces.
However, the union strongly contests the legality of this directive. Greeff pointed out that neither the World Health Organization (WHO) nor South African domestic health regulations currently require the quarantine of individuals transiting between these specific nations. The union finds it highly irregular that military personnel are being subjected to strict isolation protocols while civilian travelers from the exact same regions face no such restrictions.
Beyond the legal dispute, the primary catalyst for the threatened lawsuit is the severe deterioration of living standards at the quarantine encampment. Greeff detailed a massive infrastructure capacity failure, noting the facility is entirely unequipped to handle the volume of personnel—though exact figures remain undisclosed pending the release of core documents.
The physical environment has reportedly become unbearable for the returning forces. Soldiers are grappling with unstable electricity supplies and a severe shortage of ablution facilities. Nutritional standards have also plummeted, with troops receiving inadequate food at highly erratic intervals. Furthermore, the union highlighted critical equipment shortages, including torn tents and degraded mattresses. The overcrowding is so severe that personnel are being bunched into single tents, with many forced to sleep directly on the floor.
The situation is particularly frustrating given that the SANDF was aware of the impending quarantine and had set a June 24 deadline to prepare the facilities. Nearly three weeks have passed since the pre-planned isolation began, yet the site remains fundamentally unready. SANDU sent formal attorney letters on Friday and the following day, but the Department of Defence has failed to issue a formal reply.
While the military provided informal assurances that repairs were underway, Greeff confirmed that any maintenance conducted has been wholly inadequate to fix the core capacity issues. He described the Department’s overall response as merely “meek.”
Consequently, the returning soldiers feel deeply unappreciated and neglected by the state after serving abroad. With their dignity at stake and no formal resolution in sight, SANDU maintains that approaching the courts is now their only viable alternative to protect the rights and welfare of the troops.