Mauritius: Lockdown in paradise

Changes have been made to the original article, which did not include that the holiday had been gifted to the family and that they had travelled to Mauritius while the island was still a safe zone.

Merely one day after a Ballito family flew to Mauritius for what was to be their dream holiday, the Indian Ocean island enforced a Covid-19 lockdown which has been extended by an additional six weeks.

The original two week lockdown resulted in the closure of all the islands borders after three people tested positive for the virus.

All commercial flights were banned, and no passengers were allowed entry or transit in Mauritius.

News of the family of six stranded on the island paradise has provoked a variety of responses, but envy has, perhaps surprisingly, not been the default reaction.

Linc Church pastors Dylan and Tes Jahnig, together with their four children arrived at the tourist hotspot for a 14-day trip, which was a gift, but now are unable to leave.

The idyllic setting looks quite appealing but theirs is evidence that lock down anywhere on the planet is still a lockdown.

Tess spoke to the Courier on the prospect of an eight-week stay in Mauritius.

“On the advice of our travel agent, friends and Air Mauritius we felt confident to go ahead with our travel plans as Mauritius had been declared a safe zone.

“However, 24 hours after our arrival three cases of Covid-19 were reported and the island was placed under lockdown.

“This brought us quickly towards the reality of facing an eight week stay instead of the planned two.

“At first we were confined to our house and only one person was allowed to shop for essential supplies,” said Tes.

But just four days into lockdown the authorities declared martial law, which means they can only leave the house with a letter from the government.

All food stores were shut without warning to stop mass crowding as people were not abiding by the lockdown restrictions.

“We had not prepared a food supply that needed to last 10 days,” said Tes.

“Truthfully there have been moments of frustration as the family holiday we dreamt of has become a daily life reality where we can only stare at the beach and yet not enjoy it, however, we have been completely embraced by the local community.

“As a foreigner I have often felt alone and yet each day I receive calls and messages asking if we are okay and whether we need any help.

“We have been given food from people’s own pantry cupboards and freezers, dropped at our gate and have been blessed with online deliveries of everything we would need and more.”

Tes said they had seen the chaos a pandemic could unleash on humanity but also some of the greatest kindness and generosity from people they have never met.

“We long for home. It is a very strange reality to be faced with, being told you cannot go home.

“Our children have all dealt with this in different ways and we have had to work together as a team to make each day count.

“With limited equipment and resource we have found ways to continue to lead Linc church from afar and we have been overwhelmed by the support we have received from those at home.

“Lockdown, although different in every nation, has very similar realities for all of us.

“We truly do get this overwhelming sense that we are ALL, the whole world, in this together.”

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