Last month, a group of trans, LGBTI+ and allied organisations wrote to the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) over its reduction of vital gender-affirming services during the lockdown period. The letter was issued along with the results of a survey on the impact of Covid-19 on Home Affairs services for trans individuals. It found “a clear disregard by the DHA for the rights of transgender and gender-diverse persons during the pandemic.” Seventy-three percent of those surveyed said that the DHA has not taken “the needs of trans and other LGBTI+ persons seriously” during the lockdown. Minister Motsoaledi wrote back that under updated directions gazetted on 25 August, the DHA would resume many of its services. The coalition of organisations, in turn, replied that the directions “fall short of the urgent needs of our communities” and asked Motsoaledi “to provide further clarity and consider expanding services further.”