Lack of security at Marabastad Refugee Office puts refugees at risk of exploitation and violence

Issued by Jacques Julius MP – DA Team One South Africa Spokesperson on Immigration
16 Oct 2018 in News

This statement follows an oversight inspection by the Democratic Alliance (DA) Team One South Africa Spokesperson on Immigration, Jacques Julius MP, and the DA Gauteng Provincial Leader, John Moodey MPL, at the Desmond Tutu Refugee Reception Office in Marabastad, Tshwane. 

  

Today, the Democratic Alliance (DA) visited the Desmond Tutu Refugee Reception Office in Marabastad, Tshwane. The visit has once again proven how the failing ANC government continues to treat refugees and asylum seekers with disdain.

The DA spoke to asylum seekers who expressed their concerns regarding the conditions at this office which continue to deteriorate. We met with one gentleman from the Democratic Republic of the Congo whose work permit has expired. He travelled from Cape Town to have his permit renewed however he has not received any assistance since he first went to the office on the 16th of September 2018.

This speaks to the lack of urgency on the part of the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) to comply with a 2015 Supreme Court of Appeals judgment requiring that they re-open the Cape Town Refugee Reception Office. This would contribute greatly to addressing the capacity constraints at the remaining offices around the country.

We also spoke to the Security Chief who raised concerns regarding the high instances of robberies outside the office. The DA can confirm that none of the security cameras monitoring the perimeter of the office is working.

Recent Home Affairs Portfolio Committee meetings revealed the utter failure of the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) which allowed the contracts for security cameras to expire and failed to award new ones.

The Security Chief also confirmed that there are no dedicated police officers to assist the 3 in-house security guards on the premises. The Desmond Tutu Refugee Reception Office has requested a satellite police office from the South African Police Services (SAPS) to be stationed outside, however, this request seems to have fallen on deaf ears.

There is clearly an urgent need to address the security concerns facing asylum seekers at this office.

Whilst the DHA and the SAPS continue to ignore the safety concerns – vulnerable refugees and asylum seekers are being exploited and targeted by opportunistic criminals.

Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba and his department are to blame for the inhumane and poor treatment of refugees in South Africa. We have commitments as per the 1951 U.N. Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and the 1969 Organization of African Unity (OAU) Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa to protect and support legitimate asylum seekers and refugees.

The chaos and dysfunction at the DHA, however, is creating a situation where people who want to be in South Africa legally – now face the risk of effectively having undocumented status imposed on them. This, in an asylum system which already has a backlog of at least 140 000 asylum applications.

The failing ANC is clearly incapable of fixing South Africa’s immigration system. The DA’s immigration plan charts a path forward in the fight against corruption in the immigration system so that we can focus on efficiently implementing a user-friendly, dignified process to all who enter our country.

The DA will restore law, order and integrity in the immigration system so that we can build the safe, prosperous South Africa we all deserve.

Pictures can be downloaded here, here, and here.