South Africa relaxes Zimbabwe deportation paperwork

South Africa has relaxed requirements for Zimbabweans to get permits to stay in the country, prompting thousands to queue at government offices.

They have to get correct paperwork before a new year deadline, otherwise they will face deportation.

Officials now say that passports are no longer required and those still in the queues by closing time will be seen.

Some two million Zimbabweans are estimated to be in South Africa, many of them illegally.

They have been fleeing recent instability and economic crisis in their own country.

Slow and bureaucratic
In September, Zimbabweans working illegally in South Africa were told they had an opportunity to be processed and, if successful, given work visas and residency to stay.

So far, nearly 150,000 people have taken advantage of the amnesty and applied across South Africa in what correspondents say has been a painfully slow bureaucratic process.

Applicants have had to present their Zimbabwean passports, their birth certificates and letters from their employers or affidavits from the police to prove self-employment.

But many of the migrants crossed into South Africa from Zimbabwe illegally - without passports.

On Friday morning, Mkhuseli Apleni, director general of the Home Affairs Department, said this requirement had been dropped to encourage more people to apply and speed up the registrations.

He also said all those in the queues would be seen even after the offices closed at 1700 local time.

The BBC's Nomsa Maseko in Johannesburg says that, given the length of the queues, the process could last well into the night.

- BBC

Mugabe won’t ask SA for extension of Makwerekwere permits deadline

Zimbabwe’s Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) has accused President Robert Mugabe’s Zanu PF party of deliberately derailing the documentation of Zimbabweans living in South Africa.

“We are actually dismayed by the lukewarm attitude of the (Zimbabwe) government towards its citizens, they should be assisting but they are throwing spanners in the project,” South Africa-based MDC spokesperson Sibanengi Dube said yesterday.

The comments came amid fears that thousands of Zimbabweans would not be able to meet today’s deadline that South African authorities set for them to regularise their stay in the country.

The process of regularisation requires Zimbabweans to be in possession of passports from their country. But the Zimbabwe embassy has only been able to issue about 500 passports a day.

Mugabe rejected outright the South African government’s efforts to assist Zimbabwe to produce more passports.

“We are of the view that the Zimbabwean government isn’t excited about this project, (because) it will enable citizens to go and vote,” Dube said.

Minister of Home Affairs Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma said this week an offer to Zimbabwe of a printing press with a capacity of printing 100 000 passports daily was ignored by Harare.

Speaking from Harare, the Zanu PF spokesperson Rugare Gumbo dismissed the MDC assertions as “nonsensical”.

“We cannot turn against our own people – MDC assumes everyone who is South Africa will vote for them,” he said. “We have supporters living and working there.”

The South African government has insisted that it would not extend the ­regularisation deadline, which ends today.

The director of Zimbabwe Exiles Forum Gabriel Shumba said the Zimbabwean government was not keen to assist with this project. “They have failed to attend most stakeholder meetings with Minister Dlamini-Zuma.

“They have indicated that they don’t care. It’s unlikely they will seek an extension.”

Human Rights groups in the country have been calling for an extension of the deadline to allow an easy process.

More than 150 000 applications have been lodged with Home Affairs, which is a small number compared with the three million Zimbabweans estimated to be living in South Africa illegally.

Makwerekwere Mob South African Immigration Offices on Documentation Deadline Eve

In a last-minute push for applications, officials told Zimbabweans to remember that the deadline only concerns applications and that they can complete applications after the deadline with full documentation

Zimbabweans queued by the thousands on Thursday at offices of the South African Department of Home Affairs in an eleventh-hour bid to file applications for four-year work, study and business residency permits before a Friday deadline expires.

Meanwhile, a senior official in the South African Department of Home Affairs confirmed to VOA that South Africa offered technical assistance to Harare to speed up production of passports to meet heavy demand by Zimbabweans in South Africa. But Zimbabwean officials only took up an offer of office space in Pretoria and Cape Town, he said.

South African Home Affairs Department Director General Mkuseli Apleni declined to say whether his office offered Harare use of advanced passport-making equipment.
But Zimbabwean Co-Minister of Home Affairs Theresa Makone said the government in Harare had declined the offer of access to state-of-the art passport-making equipment to speed up the documentation program. She said the government made the decision on security grounds - but added she had not been able to obtain a clear explanation.
The equipment was capable of turning out around 4,000 passports a day in comparison to the Zimbabwean government capacity of just 500 documents a day.

Makone said she personally regretted Harare's decision not to avail itself of the offer of access to technology, as this would affect many Zimbabweans in South Africa.
With just about 24 hours left for Zimbabweans in South Africa to regularize their resident status or at least get a start on that task by submitting information to authorities, many expatriates were flocking to immigration offices.

For last minute tips on meeting the deadline at midnight Friday, reporter Tatenda Gumbo spoke with Gabriel Shumba, Director of the Zimbabwe Exiles Forum, and Jacob Mamabolo of the permit regularization project.

Mamabolo says Zimbabweans must remember that the deadline only concerns permit applications, and that they can complete their application at a later date.

- VOA

Tear Gas Released as Zimakwerekwere Throng Seeking Passports at Johannesburg Consulate

A crowd estimated at 15,000 became restless after waiting for hours at the Zimbabwean Consulate in Johannesburg without being served, resulting in a surge that led security guards to fire teargas canisters

South African security guards fired teargas canisters Tuesday at a temporary passport application office of the Zimbabwean Consulate in Johannesburg to halt a disturbance among Zimbabweans seeking to file applications for the new passports they need to apply for a four-year residency permit issued by South African authorities.

Zimbabweans working, studying or running businesses in South Africa are trying to beat the clock with a deadline looming on December 31 by which time they must regularize their stay or at least file preliminary paperwork to avoid being subject to deportation.

An estimated 15,000 Zimbabweans had lined up at the Zimbabwean Consulate.
The crowd became restless after hours without visible progress, witnesses said. Tempers flared and people charged towards the gate to the passport offices, leading the security guards to panic and fire teargas cannisters to repel the crowd.

Chaos followed as people ran in all directions. Teargas victim Teresa Nzvombe accused security guards of frustrating those in line by demanding bribes to allow them entry. She said authorities added to the misery of those standing in line by putting those making an initial application and those in the final stages of application in the same line.

Austine Moyo, head of the South African branch of the Movement for Democratic Change formation of Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai urged all Zimbabweans who have not applied for passports to use Zimbabwean identity and other documents to file residency permit applications before the deadline, seeking the passport later on.

Earlier this week Home Affairs Department spokesman Ronnie Mamoepa issued a plea urging Zimbabweans to use the time remaining to put in whatever paperwork they can manage. He again stated that the December 31 deadline will not be extended.

Father Mike Nyamarebvu of the Stakeholders Forum comprising officials of the South African Home Affairs Department and Zimbabwean civic groups and political parties told VOA Studio 7 reporter Ntungamili Nkomo that he is happy with the strong turnout by Zimbabweans trying to beat the deadline and legalize their status.

- VOA

Deadline looms for Zim refugees

As the clock ticked towards the deadline for Zimbabweans to apply for papers allowing them to remain in South Africa, hundreds of Zimbabweans jostled for position at the Home Affairs centre in Wynberg yesterday.

A special dispensation granted to Zimbabweans which allowed them to live, work, study and have access to basic health care in South Africa ends on Friday, after which those who do not have asylum papers, approved refugee status or permits face deportation.

With the December 31 deadline looming, Zimbabweans queued at the Wynberg centre from the early hours to submit their documents.

With many in the queue feeling their places were threatened by new arrivals, resourceful Zimbabweans created a list to maintain order.

Braam Hanekom, of refugee activist group Passop, said Home Affairs accepted the system and he had not heard of malpractice or corruption in the compiling of the list.

“It’s a pretty organised system for the time being.”

Hanekom said that it had been a tough day at the centre, with many people “frustrated and tired” after hours of queueing in the heat.

He urged Zimbabweans to keep their places in the queue instead of giving up and returning another day. Home Affairs staff were “doing their best” under trying conditions, Hanekom said.

Many in the queue cited the relaxation of Home Affairs rules as the reason for their late registration. Several weeks ago, Zimbabweans were required to present a passport to register successfully for the right to stay.

But a huge backlog led Home Affairs to accept the receipt of a passport application. Hanekom estimated that there were 5 000 people only three weeks ago who were unable to apply, but said their situation had changed.

Some Zimbabweans explained that work pressure had prevented them from applying earlier.

“Life here is expensive. Just being here (in the queue) I’m losing money,” said Trevor Mtuda, an artist from Harare.

Mtuda, who joined the queue at 4am, said that “political tensions and no development” had given him no choice but to live in South Africa.

Keniah Garanowado, a Harare mother who worked in South Africa and sent money to her children back home, insisted that she would not return to vote until the political situation in Zimbabwe improved.

“Normally I would vote for change as we are suffering. I want to vote if there’s change,” she said.

A salon worker, who gave her name only as Rose, 25, and who said she worked in Khayelitsha, arrived around 3am. She was number 282 on the list.

“I can’t say if I will be allowed to stay because they have not yet verified my receipts,” she said.

Some people in yesterday’s queue were confused about whether they had the correct papers.

Henry Rivbwe complained that he had not been able to get a work permit. “I’m not sure I’ll get it… don’t know exactly what is going on,” he said.

Hanekom said: “There is a lot of confusion, the process is under a lot of pressure.” - Cape Times

Youth beaten for insulting foreigners

A BOY was beaten by bystanders on Goodwill Day after he insulted two blind Zimbabwean "artists" on the train between Cape Town and Kraaifontein.

The beggars got on the train armed with a guitar and a cup, and introduced themselves as Joseph Sephine and Ngamla Mpinza from Zimbabwe.

They played well and people gave them money. One passenger spoiled the fun by insulting them.

He said: "You are doing a sketch (play acting). You can both see. You lazy bastards. Go back to Zim and tell Mugabe to give you work. You are not getting my geld," he shouted.

"People gave you money. How did you manage to see it if you claim to be blind. Hey, makwerekwere, leave us alone. I don't buy your story."

Both men appeared blind and wore heavy sunglasses.

A visibly furious Michael Dongo from the Congo, told the boy: "Can't you see that these people are disabled. What have these people done to you to deserve this."

Punches started to fly. Other passengers joined in. The boy was pinned down and beaten badly until a woman screamed and the beating stopped.

Nopinki Sekeni said the boy deserved the beating.

"These people are old enough to be his parents and they did not do anything wrong to him to deserve such treatment," she said.

"For God's sake, can't he see that these people are really blind? It proves that this boy has no manners. Thank God we taught him a lesson."

Fumanekile Makeleni said: "We won't allow any person to be insulted by thugs because he is a foreigner. All of us are one race, which is the human race. So we will not allow anyone to violate our human rights, irrespective of where one comes from.

"This trend of using bad language to foreigners is common in South Africa. The government must make it a crime to call someone a kwerekwere. It's like calling a black South African a k*****, a coloured, Malawi or an Indian a coolie. I do not think this boy will ever insult a foreigner again after what we did to him," he said.

- Sowetan

No rest for Home Affairs officials

Cape Town - Officials at Home Affairs offices are hard at work, with offices running 16-hour days, in a bid to process hundreds of Zimbabweans queuing for permits to meet the 31 December deadline.

Home Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma said everything was going "relatively well."

"We are really trying to work hard (to resolve) the whole permitting issue, not just (for) the Zimbabweans," said Dlamini Zuma, who pointed out that Home Affairs officials were working a two-shift system which sees them only clock off at 10pm.

"Our senior managers are not going on holiday, but I think we should give them the long weekend for Christmas," she said.

Dlamini-Zuma paid a surprise visit to the Wynberg Home Affairs offices this morning to hear first-hand any complaints applicants had about the Zimbabwe Dispensation Project, which is aimed at granting Zimbabweans study, work or business permits in a bid to free up the overburdened asylum process.

Her visit is part of a series of visits by departmental officials to check up on bottlenecks at home affairs offices.

Braam Hannekom, from People against Suffering, Suppression, Oppression and Poverty (Passop), believed that if the department continued to process applications at its Wynberg office as it had done yesterday - where he said 550 applications were taken - that there would be no need for an extension to the deadline.

Hannekom, who has long been calling for an extension to the deadline, added that from reports, he had gathered that the application process had been "surprisingly" free of corruption.

Dlamini Zuma said the only reports of corruption related to the process dated back to the beginning of the process where Zimbabweans were sold applications by their fellow countrymen.

By yesterday, 127 564 applications had been processed since the Zimbabwe dispensation programme's April extension, said Jackson MacKay, the Deputy Director-General responsible for immigration.

MacKay said of these, 42 191 applications had been finalised and a further 10 844 turned down.

Dlamini Zuma hastened to add that those applicants that had their application for permits rejected are given the chance to appeal these applications through a review process.

She said many applications were rejected because applicants didn't bring along the necessary supporting documentation - such as a letter from their employer, in the case where they were applying for a work permit.

She said many that applied for permits were still waiting to receive Zimbabwean passports, but Zimbabweans could still apply, as long as they brought along their passport application and the corresponding receipt.

Fingerprinting and police checks were also adding to the bottlenecks, but Dlamini Zuma said Zimbabweans could still apply and that these would be carried out later.

She said charts with portraits of each of the senior managers, along with their cell phones, had been made available at each home affairs office in a bid to solve problems members of the public may encounter when they visit offices.

Members of the public should report any office which failed to put up the wall chart.

One Zimbabwean, a former machine operator who didn't want to be identified, said he had been standing in the queue outside Wynberg home affairs for hours on end. He came to South Africa a year ago and was now working as a gardener in the city.

"(The Zimbabwe Dispensation Project) is good, but some are being rejected," he said, adding that he had only gone to apply now, with just under 10 days to the deadline. He had to wait two months to get his Zimbabwean passport.

The minister reiterated that the 31 December deadline would not be extended.

Dlamini-Zuma pointed out that the application process had already been extended, after originally running from April 2009 to April this year.

- BuaNews

Deportation crunch for Zim workers

With just 12 days to go desperate Zimbabweans are battling to get their papers in order ahead of the December 31 deadline, or face deportation

Tensions are rising in queues at Home Affairs, and on Friday assault charges were laid against a security guard who allegedly manhandled refugee activist Braam Hanekom and Zimbabweans waiting in a chaotic queue outside the Bellville Home Affairs offices.

Kaajal Ramjathan-Keogh, head of the refugee and migrants rights programme at Lawyers for Human Rights, said they doubted that all the hundreds of thousands of applicants could be processed in time.

“We remain concerned that the extremely short timeframes for such a large project may be used as a smokescreen for starting up large-scale deportations again.”

She was also concerned that Home Affairs had been late in telling immigrants with pending applications not to leave the country. She said hundreds had already left to be in Zimbabwe for Christmas.

Hanekom, founder of People Against Suffering, Suppression, Oppression and Poverty, was at the Bellville offices speaking to Zimbabweans in the queues on Friday when a security guard told him not to speak to them.

“I told him I was in a public space and that I had a right to talk to them. He grabbed me and pushed me.”

Others in the queue complained of guards wanting bribes.

Hanekom said: “It was absolute chaos and there were not enough officials to deal with the large number of people… it will lead to much frustration and confusion.”

One Zimbabwean, who did not want to be named because he feared being victimised, said he was carrying his seven-month-old son when the same security guard shouted and started pushing him.

“I nearly fell. But he stopped when people shouted at him to leave me alone. Now I’m too scared to apply for my permit.”

Hanekom and the Zimbabwean laid charges of assault at Bellville police station.

The security company’s line manager, James Ketelo, said disciplinary action could be taken.

Associated Press says there are as many as 3 million Zimbabweans living and working in South Africa after fleeing the crisis in their homeland. SA authorities, who had allowed many to stay without passports or papers, announced a crackdown in September, saying that those who did not apply for legal status before December 31 would have to go home.

This has led to huge crowds at immigration offices across South Africa, with some Zimbabweans lining up for several days to apply for work or study permits.

Human rights groups complained that four months was insufficient to process the applicants.

Zimbabweans with passports merely need to apply to Home Affairs for a work permit by December 31. But those without passports first need to obtain proof that they applied. The applications cost R750.

Zimbabwean consular officials have set up desks at the Bellville Home Affairs offices for people to apply for Zimbabwean passports. Once they have a receipt proving they have applied, they can apply to South Africa for a work permit.

The asylum seekers’ document that many have is no longer valid.

The Zimbabwe Exiles Forum recently met Minister of Home Affairs Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma to raise concerns about the logjams in the Zimbabwe Documentation Project (ZDP).

The registration process started months ago but there have been numerous delays. The forum’s executive director, Gabriel Shumba, said Home Affairs had received 116 000 applications so far, of which 10,000 were rejected, while 27,000 were approved. At least 79,000 people were still waiting.

Shumba said: “This deadline is not realistic but Home Affairs remain adamant about the December 31 deadline. However, people have been having serious problems with both the Zimbabwean Consulate and Home Affairs. There is tension in Zimbabwe ahead of the elections next year, and it would be a human rights tragedy to send people home where they will be easy targets to Zanu-PF intelligence. There is a perception that those living here are MDC supporters. It’s really scary.”

- Sunday Argus

Dlamini-Zuma urges Zimbabweans to sacrifice Xmas

"Not going home for Christmas is a small price to pay." That's the message from Home Affairs Minister Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma.
Minister Dlamini-Zuma was addressing thousands of Zimbabweans registering for their permits at the Harrison street office in Johannesburg today. Minister Dlamini-Zuma urged all Zimbabweans to register before the 31 December deadline - even if they do not have the required documents.

Zimbabweans who fail to register for their permits on time could face deportation early next year. Dr Dlamini Zuma says: "The Zimbabweans must also be fair on us and realise that we are working and doing our best to sort out their issue and if they miss going home this Christmas it's a small scarifies."

The minister insists the deadline will not be extended. There is an estimated 1.5-million Zimbabweans in South Africa, and with less than two weeks before the deadline, many fear they are running out of time.

The worried Zimbabwean nationals say their concerns are not only whether their applications will be accepted or not, but with delays in getting necessary information from the Zimbabwean embassy, many fear they will not make it home for Christmas.

The Movement for Democratic Change’s Sibanengi Dube says: "The major challenge is actually coming from the Zimbabwean government, they fail to process the papers on time."

From September up to 17 December, more than a hundred and twenty thousand applications were received. Just over 40,000 applications had been adjudicated. Close to 84,000 applications are pending. Fraudulent documents were submitted by almost 300 people. And just under 11,000 applications were denied.

- SABC

SA rejects over 10 000 Zimbabwean dispensation applications

Home Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma says more than 10,000 applications from Zimbabweans who are applying for dispensation have been rejected. She paid an un-announced visit to the Wynberg Home Affairs office.

Hundreds of Zimbabweans queued outside to complete their applications. The department says more than 127,000 applications have been received, while just over 42,000 have been processed.

Minister Dlamini-Zuma says there could be a variety of reasons for the rejections, which are also being reviewed. "One of the reasons used was somebody misunderstood and didn't only want a copy of the persons passport but also a copy of the person's employer."

She says the biggest challenge now is to increase staff at their offices, since the number of applications is increasing as the deadline is looming.

- SABC

The Chase of the Makwerekwere

Heavy police presence creates panic

JOHANNESBURG - A heavy presence of police in central Johannesburg has sent many Zimbabwean immigrants here panicking, fearing this could herald the beginning of a campaign to round up them for deportation back to Zimbabwe.

The police deployment appeared heaviest in the Hillbrow and Berea areas of Johannesburg, districts notorious for crime but also the home of the majority of Zimbabweans living in Johannesburg. “What is happening here is scary. There has been a heavy presence of police in the last few weeks. My stay here is becoming a nightmare as police openly declare they are ready to arrest undocumented Zimbabweans,” said Sikhumbuzo Ndlovu of Berea.

South Africa has given Zimbabwean immigrants up to December 31 to obtain permits to stay here or face deportation.

But the Pretoria authorities have said they will not resume deportations immediately after expiry of the deadline to give time for the home affairs department to process the tens of thousands of applications for permits submitted by immigrants.

Police authorities say increased patrols in Johannesburg and other parts of South Africa are normal to combat crime during the festive season.

But Monica Tagwireyi, a Zimbabwean living in Johannesburg, was not convinced especially because junior police officers – who have been accused of extorting money from illegal immigrants – have reportedly been publicly boasting that they will be rounding up all Zimbabweans with permits to stay in South Africa for deportation. Tagwireyi said: “I am scared as I applied for my passport but I have failed to obtain in the six we were told it would take to process them.”

- The Zimbabwean

South Africa Eases Deportation Threat Against Zimbabweans Seeking Work Permits

The South African government has announced it will not deport Zimbabwean migrants who can show they have applied to work legally in the country. But it says it will not extend the deadline for applying for the permits, causing concern among civic groups that work with the migrants.

Activists working with Zimbabwean migrants have welcomed South Africa's announcement that it would not begin deporting undocumented Zimbabweans until it has finished a three month-old registration process.

But Home Affairs Minister Nkosozana Dlamini-Zuma reiterated that the migrants still must apply by December 31 . "We will not extend the deadline. That is why we are saying, bring in your form. Even if you do not have fingerprints, bring it in. Even if you do not have a passport, bring it in. So that we know you are here. And then we we will extend the process in time," he said.

The government in September announced it was ending an 18-month moratorium on deportations of undocumented Zimbabweans. At the same time it launched a program to give legal status to those who could prove they were working or studying here.

There are an estimated 1.5-million Zimbabweans in South Africa. Officials say they have received about 100,000 applications and of these 40,000 still remained to be processed.

Civic groups while welcoming the announcement said the registration process had been slow and confusing to some migrants.

Some applicants stand in line for days before being able to apply. Others have been unable to obtain necessary passports or birth certificates from the Zimbabwean embassy.

Activists say many Zimbabwean workers in remote rural areas either do not know about the process or cannot afford to travel to the cities where the program is being conducted.

Attorney Kaajal Ramjathan-Keogh of Johannesburg's Lawyers for Human Rights said it is not likely that all eligible Zimbabweans would be processed in time. "The process has been a failure and the only way to remedy the situation is if the deadline is extended to allow more Zimbabweans access to the process and to be able to regularize their situation," Ramjathan-Keogh said.

Dlamini-Zuma said a meeting Tuesday with the activists had raised legitimate concerns and led to the decision to postpone any expulsions. "That is why we are saying there'll be no deportation until we have finished processing everything that we would have received including waiting for those people who are waiting for their passports," he said.

Many of the Zimbabwean migrants apply for political asylum citing political oppression and human rights abuses in their country.

The South African government says 90 percent of these people are actually economic migrants looking for jobs because of Zimbabwe's economic crisis.

The government says the economic and political climate in Zimbabwe has improved since the installation of a unity government nearly two years ago.

But Ramjathan Keogh says the power sharing agreement between Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai is shaky and notes that Mr. Mugabe has called for elections next year. "The situation is not improving. The national unity government, the agreement will end in February of 2011 before the elections which are scheduled in Zimbabwe. And after the end of that agreement we do not know what will happen and it is likely that we will continue to see an influx of Zimbabweans coming over the border in need of protection," Keogh said.

In addition, activists say an average of 17,000 Zimbabweans are being deported each month despite the moratorium. And they say the thousands of unemployed Zimbabweans in South Africa do not qualify for the permits. As a result, they say the crisis is likely to continue.

- VOA

Zim permit process problematic

With the deadline for the Zimbabwean documentation process fast approaching, analysts believe many people will not be able to access those permits on time.

Researchers at Wits University say poor management and communication at Home Affairs have resulted in a slow process.

Thousands of Zimbabwe nationals across the country have until December 31 to apply for proper study, work and residency permits or face deportation.

While offices in KZN have experienced a few minor problems, branches in Gauteng have been so busy people have had to camp outside for days.

The university's Roni Amit says they have conducted research in that province and found the process is problematic. At least 100 000 people still have to apply.

"It's going to be a serious problem and we're very concerned about what's going to happen to these people in January and whether they'll be the start of mass deportations.

"The HA [Home Affairs] hasn't really given any reason for seizing to extend the deadline so if they're in fact serious about providing this documentation to all these people who are eligible, then there's not any reason not to extend the deadline," she said.