News / Africa
Human Rights Lawyers accepts ANC xenophobic MP's apology
05 Jul 2011 at 02:41hrs | Views
Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) has welcomed ANC MP Maggie Maunye's apology for remarks she made about foreigners in Parliament last week.
The organisation had called on Maunye to retract her statements publicly and assist in finding solutions "so that everyone within South Africa's borders can enjoy their rights under the law".
Maunye, who chairs the parliamentary oversight committee on home affairs, implied at a meeting of the committee on Wednesday that foreigners who settled here were soaking up resources. She questioned the use of human rights laws and the constitution to accommodate foreigners and suggested that they should be turned away, as migrants were by Spain.
On Sunday, the ANC chief whip's office said Maunye had "carefully reflected" on the comments, which might have been construed to be xenophobic, and had recognised "that her views, although not so intended, may have run counter to the letter and spirit of ANC policies".
She realised her remarks might have been insensitive to the plight of many African foreigners who were here legitimately or because of hardships in their countries.
This was only after Lawyers for Human Rights said on Friday it was unacceptable that the chairwoman of the portfolio committee monitoring implementation of international human rights obligations could take such an uninformed and blatantly xenophobic view of contributions made by foreigners in building a modern South Africa.
The group said Maunye would do better to scrutinise mismanagement of the Department of Home Affairs' asylum management directorate during the 11 years that the Refugees Act had been in place.
On Monday, the group said it was happy with the apology.
The organisation had called on Maunye to retract her statements publicly and assist in finding solutions "so that everyone within South Africa's borders can enjoy their rights under the law".
Maunye, who chairs the parliamentary oversight committee on home affairs, implied at a meeting of the committee on Wednesday that foreigners who settled here were soaking up resources. She questioned the use of human rights laws and the constitution to accommodate foreigners and suggested that they should be turned away, as migrants were by Spain.
On Sunday, the ANC chief whip's office said Maunye had "carefully reflected" on the comments, which might have been construed to be xenophobic, and had recognised "that her views, although not so intended, may have run counter to the letter and spirit of ANC policies".
She realised her remarks might have been insensitive to the plight of many African foreigners who were here legitimately or because of hardships in their countries.
This was only after Lawyers for Human Rights said on Friday it was unacceptable that the chairwoman of the portfolio committee monitoring implementation of international human rights obligations could take such an uninformed and blatantly xenophobic view of contributions made by foreigners in building a modern South Africa.
The group said Maunye would do better to scrutinise mismanagement of the Department of Home Affairs' asylum management directorate during the 11 years that the Refugees Act had been in place.
On Monday, the group said it was happy with the apology.
Source - Pretoria Times
