Letter: If only Motsoaledi should have focused on Home Affairs instead of fanning xenophobia

IOL  - 12 Dcember 2022 

I am surprised I do not hear of any nominations for the Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi to become the president of the ANC after all the xenophobic workouts that kept him busy and propelled him suddenly into the headlines in the past few months.

But then again that is not unexpected regarding the ANC cadre of today. These so-called leaders sleep the term, only to wake up a few months before an election with exaggerated little details of little importance. And if they are not sleeping, they are either shocked or rushing to scenes, and this is the highest standard of service delivery and governance.

Think of the transport minister who waited until a few months before an elective conference to announce the big news that the department responsible for “constructing” roads will now strive with all its might to repair potholes, and that identifying ghost workers is a fulfilment of a mandate and election promises.

Then the energy minister and his president came up with the brilliant strategy of simply placing a white person before a severely complex energy problem and load shedding.

So meticulous are these ANC cadres that they spend a good deal of time reading the newspapers and identifying threats to their political status, that a legendary sports presenter like Robert Marawa, who built his career without political help, was ruthlessly put aside as a lesson for upsetting politicians.

Motsoaledi too probably thought this was the best way to be relevant, as he suddenly became a hero for xenophobic sentiments and actions.

Meantime, he neglected the vast role of oversight in his department which resulted in a shameful bill going before Parliament. Not surprising, because an acceptable and constitutionally sound bill would require a lot of work, away from the headlines.

Now South Africa faces a constitutional crisis because the politicians have betrayed our nation by setting up a stupid bill aimed at frustrating independent candidates. If Motsoaledi had focused on the mechanics of Home Affairs instead of xenophobia he would have had the time to design a good bill.

Moreover, Home Affairs would not need his errant and attentionseeking visits and “best selfspokesperson” tendencies, as those already employed would simply do their tasks. We are led by dangerous clowns who are far from funny because busybodies, without ideas and combined with idle hands, are the factories of evil.

www.samigration.com

Zimbabwean lady with fake South African ID, born in 200 July 1991, left people in stitches

Twitter |12 December 2022

In July of 1991, a Zimbabwean woman who presented a falsified birth certificate indicating her place of birth as South Africa had the entire world in stitches.

There has been a long-running black market in identifying documents sold both by the Department of Home Affairs and by identity theft rings.

It was reported by General Masuku that a Zimbabwean illegal immigrant was using a forged South African passport. The only item that seems off is the birth year, which is shown as 1991 instead of the proper year.

In an effort to combat this type of fraud, the African National Congress, the ruling party in the Republic of South Africa, has proposed a smart identity card and a move away from the green book.

It is only possible for a person to enter our world between January 1 and December 31 due to he fact that a month can have no more than 31 days.

The majority of South Africans would disagree that the name in question is commonly used there. Everyone in possession of one is automatically considered an alien in our midst. It is for this reason that we must conduct a thorough forensic audit of our own government in order to identify and remove corrupt officials.

www.samigration.com

Zimbabwe exemption permit case to be heard next year 

The Citizen | 12 Dec 2022

The ZEPs are expected to expire in June next year following an extension by the home affairs department. 

The Helen Suzman Foundation’s (HSF) challenge of Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi’s decision to terminate the Zimbabwe exemption permit (ZEP) will reportedly be heard in April 2023, two months before they expire.

The director of the foundation Nicole Fritz told TimesLive on Monday that a three-bench panel of judges would hear the matter.

“We are disappointed that hearing dates could not be secured earlier in that we are anxious to have the matter heard by the courts and for a just resolution to be determined,” Fritz was quoted as saying.

In their court case, the Zimbabwe Exemption Permit Holders Association, Helen Suzman Foundation, Zimbabwean Immigration Federation and Zimbabwean Diaspora Association NPC are seeking to overturn government’s decision not to renew the permit.

Motsoaledi, Home Affairs director-general, President Cyril Ramaphosa and Cabinet – the respondents – are opposing the case.

ZEP Holders Association also wants Zimbabweans to be declared permanent South African residents.

ZEP extension

Cabinet announced last November that the ZEP would not be extended again, with Minister in the Presidency Mondli Gungubele announcing at the time that ZEP holders had until 31 December 2022 to apply for a visa to continue living in South Africa, return to Zimbabwe, or be deported.

In September this year, the department of home affairs then extended the Zimbabwean Exemption Permits by six months to 30 June 2023.

According to Motsoaledi at the time, the decision was made to give the ZEP holders an opportunity to apply for one or other visas provided for in the Immigration Act they may qualify for.

Only a few Zimbabwean nationals had applied for visas or waivers, hence the extension to allow for more applications, said Motsoaledi at the time.

“No holder of the exemption may be arrested, ordered to depart or be detained for purposes of deportation or deported in terms of the section 34 of the Immigration Act for any reason related to him of her not having any valid exemption certificate in his or her passport,” said Motsoaledi.

www.samigration.com

Massive visa backlog in South Africa

Businesstech | 12 December 2022

The Department of Home Affairs is sitting with a massive visa backlog of over 56,000 applications, which it says will only be cleared by the middle of 2024.

Responding to a written parliamentary Q&A this week, home affairs minister Aaron Motsoaledi said that his department still needs to process 56,543 visas.

He said that the turnaround times for visas differ depending on which visa is being processed. It usually takes 4 to 10 weeks to process critical skills visas, he said, while business and general work visas take 8 to 14 weeks.

“The department envisages to have cleared the current backlog by June 2024 for all categories of visas,” he said.

Visa applications and processing have become a veritable nightmare for businesses in South Africa looking to hire specialists and critical skills needed for operations.

Companies have run into frustrating hurdles with these visa types over the last few months as the department dithered with systems and shifted processes around. Businesses have described getting the necessary visas for foreign workers in the country as a nightmare.

Following an apparent collapse in the processing of critical skill and business visas in August, the department promised to fast-track the processing of critical skill and business visas in October – but progress has been slow.

At the time, Motsoaledi said his department and the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition had set up a dedicated team to deal with the growing backlog and to track and ensure the finalisation of business visas. However, as revealed this week, the backlog remains significant.

Quickly processing Critical Skills visas was a key target in Home Affairs’ Annual Performance Plan.

A new Critical Skills list was published in February 2022, with a major update in August, adding 39 positions related to the medical field.

The publishing of the critical skills list was an essential aspect of president Cyril Ramaphosa’s plan to draw much-needed professionals to South Africa.

Other visa developments promised by the president have also fallen flat.

Digital nomad visas

In his state of the nation address in February, president Cyril Ramaphosa said that the government was looking to adopt remote-working ‘digital nomad’ and start-up visas as part of a push to attract more skilled workers.

He also said that the country would introduce other visa reforms to make it easier for people to enter the country.

Since making the announcement, little has been done to execute these plans, however.

In a separate response this week, Motsoaledi reiterated that South Africa has made no provisions for a so-called ‘digital nomad’ visa. The minister said that current legislation does not make any room for such visas, and so there are simply no plans to introduce one.

“The current visa categories are legislated by the Immigration Act No. 13 of 2002. In its current form, the Immigration Act does not make provision for digital nomad eVisa. Therefore, there are no plans to implement a digital nomad e-visa,” he said.

He said that South Africa’s eVisa programme was established to make it easier for travellers to enter the country without having to visit an embassy or mission beforehand. There are also 135 countries who can enter South Africa without having to get a visa.

However, the three- and six-month forward outlook for these programmes shows no progress.

EVisas are currently available in 14 countries. Motsoaledi said that his department has not yet decided on the total number and the names of countries that will qualify for eVisas in the quarter.

Beyond the 135 countries that South Africa offers visa-free entry to, Motsoaledi gave no indication of this expanding over the next six months. Kenya was added to the visa-free entry list in November.

www.samigration.com

Birth registration: How SA’s legislation harms foreign national children

The Saturday Star | 09 December 2022

Johannesburg - Birth registration is a fundamental human right as it triggers the ability to access other rights. South Africa’s regulatory framework is premised on the fact that one’s residence status determines whether a child’s birth can be registered or not.

The registration of children born to foreign nationals, who are not permanent residents or refugees, is subject to the provision of valid documentation.

Senior Associate in the Pro Bono and Human Rights practice at law firm Cliffe Dekker Hoffmeyr, Elgene Roos, said the consequences of not being documented can be far-reaching and result in a child not being able to access basic services that they are entitled to under the Constitution.

“The current legislative framework does not cater to children born to undocumented foreign nationals or even undocumented South African citizens who do not have IDs as a consequence of the apartheid regime. The child's birth will then go undocumented,” she said.

And while the law does not speak to a situation like this, however, practically the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) will most likely demand that the parents wait for permits to be issued and once they have the permits they can, at a Home Affairs office, register their child's birth. Should the permits be issued after 30 days from when the child was born, the parents will have to apply for late birth registration where a fee is payable. In an instance where one parent is documented, birth registration can still be problematic.

“This is a tricky question because the law and courts say one thing but DHA implements the law in different ways. I refer you to the Centre for Child Law versus Director General of Home Affairs case. This matter came before court where a South African father was unable to register the birth of his child because the mother was undocumented and did not have valid documentation as was required by the Regulations to the Births & Deaths Registration Act. The department refused to register the child's birth because the mother's documents were not in order,” Roos said.

When it comes to children, a mother automatically assumes parental responsibility. Even in terms of the Children's Act, the mother is automatically conferred with parental responsibility, whereas a father's parental responsibility only kicks in once he makes a positive contribution toward the child.

“DHA will be happy to register a child's birth when the mother is present and has valid documentation. However, they will not do the same where it is only the father who seeks to register their child's birth, more especially where the parents are not married,” she said.

Roos said the issue centred on the father's right to register their children and declaring certain sections and regulations of the Births and Deaths Registration Act as unconstitutional and invalid.

The Constitutional Court noted that there were competing and conflicting interpretations of certain provisions of the act, and noted that even where one provision allows an unmarried father to register their child's birth, another provision only allows a father to do so where the mother is present and gives her consent to do so. The Constitutional Court declared the provisions in question unconstitutional and gave DHA 24 months to remedy the defect. As it stands, unmarried fathers are allowed to register their children's birth without the mother present.

“This case was a huge success. However, DHA in recent months has created additional barriers for fathers who seek to register the birth of their children, and that is that they require DNA tests to be done before accepting an application. This is deemed as a barrier because of the high cost of a DNA test that not everyone can afford it, and the delay created by needing these tests performed,” she said.

International instruments like the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child expressly recognise the right of every child to be registered and to acquire a nationality. So does the Constitution.

The law, domestic and international, recognises the impact non-birth registration has on a child. The fact that birth registration in SA is contingent on the parents having valid documentation contravenes international law as birth registration is not seen from the viewpoint that it is actually the right of every child. Therefore, a parent's nationality and/or immigration status should not be relevant when it comes to having the child's birth registered.

“There is this huge misconception that if you are born in South Africa you are automatically a citizen. That’s wrong and it’s not the way our law works. If you are born to foreign nationals, you assume the same nationality as your parents,” Roos said.

Despite promises from DHA to comment, the department did not reply at the time of going to print.

www.samigration.com