News / Africa
South Africa to consult over Zimbabweans facing deportation
19 Jul 2024 at 19:51hrs | Views
South Africa's Department of Home Affairs has announced plans to consult on the future of approximately 230,000 Zimbabwean and Lesotho migrants after a court halted their deportation attempts, reports News24.
Leon Schreiber, who recently became the home affairs minister, stated on Wednesday that the upcoming consultations will proceed without any "pre-determined outcome."
The presence of Zimbabwean migrants in South Africa is a sensitive issue. The country faces an unemployment rate of over 30% and ongoing challenges in providing basic services. Since 2008, South Africa has seen recurring xenophobic attacks, and the move to end special permits for Zimbabweans and Lesotho nationals was perceived by some as a tactic to bolster support for the African National Congress (ANC).
"The court told us 'you can't have a pre-determined outcome and then retroactively pretend to consult,'" Schreiber, a Democratic Alliance member in a coalition with the ANC, told News24. "We need to see what works for South Africa and the affected people."
In 2021, former Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi began a process requiring Zimbabwean migrants, who have had the right to live and work in South Africa since 2009, to apply for new work permits. Most migrants would not qualify under the new criteria, leading to a legal battle that ended with the Constitutional Court's decision against the department in June.
The 2009 decision to allow Zimbabweans to stay legally was driven by Zimbabwe's economic collapse, which remains largely unchanged. Today, 178,000 Zimbabweans benefit from that decision, working in various roles from CEOs to gardeners and waiters, along with many other documented and undocumented migrants from Zimbabwe.
The Lesotho Exemption Permit, established in 2016, addressed a "socioeconomic" crisis in Lesotho, as described by the department.
Current permit holders are legally permitted to remain in South Africa until November 29 next year.
Schreiber also announced the reconstitution of an immigration advisory board, a legal requirement not met for a decade, to help design a way forward.
Leon Schreiber, who recently became the home affairs minister, stated on Wednesday that the upcoming consultations will proceed without any "pre-determined outcome."
The presence of Zimbabwean migrants in South Africa is a sensitive issue. The country faces an unemployment rate of over 30% and ongoing challenges in providing basic services. Since 2008, South Africa has seen recurring xenophobic attacks, and the move to end special permits for Zimbabweans and Lesotho nationals was perceived by some as a tactic to bolster support for the African National Congress (ANC).
"The court told us 'you can't have a pre-determined outcome and then retroactively pretend to consult,'" Schreiber, a Democratic Alliance member in a coalition with the ANC, told News24. "We need to see what works for South Africa and the affected people."
The 2009 decision to allow Zimbabweans to stay legally was driven by Zimbabwe's economic collapse, which remains largely unchanged. Today, 178,000 Zimbabweans benefit from that decision, working in various roles from CEOs to gardeners and waiters, along with many other documented and undocumented migrants from Zimbabwe.
The Lesotho Exemption Permit, established in 2016, addressed a "socioeconomic" crisis in Lesotho, as described by the department.
Current permit holders are legally permitted to remain in South Africa until November 29 next year.
Schreiber also announced the reconstitution of an immigration advisory board, a legal requirement not met for a decade, to help design a way forward.
Source - News24
