Human Rights Watch criticizes treatment of Zimbabweans in S.A.

By Warren Moroka and Tererai Karimakwenda
17 November 2005

Officials in the police service and immigration sections of the South African Department of Home Affairs have again been criticized heavily for harassing, ill-treating and extorting money from desperate asylum seekers at its refugee reception centers. In a report entitled “Living On the Margins, Inadequate Protection for Refugees and Asylum Seekers In South Africa,” the international watchdog Human Rights Watch says refugee center officials often extort large sums of money in return for the issuing of asylum seeker permits.

The report also criticized the rampant extortion by police officials who take advantage of undocumented status to demand money in return for the freedom of asylum seekers. The HRW survey, which took place between July last year and February this year, collected the views of refugee service non-governmental organizations, officials from the Department of Home Affairs, asylum seekers and refugees in Johannesburg.

The report contains findings to the effect that some officials at the Department of Home Affairs receptions centers were so untrained in handling asylum seekers and refugees that they did not know where to refer cases requiring special protection, like unaccompanied children. The heavy presence of ‘brokers’ who make money out of linking desperate asylum seekers with corrupt departmental officials who issue documents for a fee was also identified as a major impediment for refugee access to protection.

It also noted the negative effect of under-staffing and the department’s policy inconsistencies. It pointed out that even after being granted refugee status, applicants are denied indefinite stay status. This has been replaced with a law requiring the renewal of refugee permits every two years. Such a policy effectively denied the refugee access to various rights, including access to health care.

The notorious Lindela Detention Centre in Krugersdorp was singled out for ill-treating refugees and running a very poor healthcare system for the large population of inmates. Over 45 people, mostly Zimbabwean asylum seekers, have died of neglect and preventable diseases in Lindela since the beginning of the year. More than 400 were hospitalized in the same period. Stung by last month’s damning findings of a commission of enquiry into deaths at the center early this year, Home Affairs minister Nosiviwe-Mapisa Nqakula promised that the problems identified at Lindela would be dealt with in 30 days.

As the period draws to an end, nothing has been heard of any improvements but reports still point out that there are no visible changes in holding conditions and the treatment of inmates. Government spokesman Joel Netshitenzhe concurred that corruption and red tape were serious problems in the refugee reception and protection system. He said the country needed to do more to ensure adequate refugee protection measures but gave no timetable within which the unspecified actions would take place.