SPT bemoans SA abuse of Zim refugees

The Solidarity Peace Trust said South Africa should turn its attention to the fact that MDC supporters were once again being abducted or arrested in some cases after being attacked by marauding gangs.

South Africans need to be aware of the escalating destabilisation that is preventing asylum seekers, refugees and economic migrants from going home. The majority of Zimbabwean exiles would prefer to return to their families and rebuild their lives but they continue to perceive that it is unsafe to do so, said SPTs Chairperson, Bishop Rubin Phillip.

He commended the Department of Home Affairs for becoming more proactive and setting up mechanisms to fast-track the documentation processes, but indicated that more could still be done.

There are still worrying issues that need to be addressed. Members of the South African Police continue to harass, arrest and assault asylum seekers and economic migrants, threatening them with deportation and, in numerous cases, demanding bribes, added the bishop.

In April 2009, Human Rights Watch reported that as many as 18 000 Zimbabweans were deported each month, among the highest deportation figures in the world, a practice criticised by the North Gauteng High Court judgment of February 11 the same year.

The court also criticised the undue delays in issuing documents under the Refugees Act, the practice of keeping asylum seekers in immigration detention pending the outcome of applications and the re-arresting of detainees upon their release, saying this was against the South African constitution.

The Trust reiterates Amnesty International’s view that SADC and AU leaders have missed every opportunity to end human rights violations in Zimbabwe and that no meaningful progress has been made in implementing reforms meant to guarantee peace and security in the country, said the bishop.