Home affairs in court fight to block 22 Afghan nationals ‘fleeing the Taliban’ entry into SA

The department of home affairs refused entry into South Africa for 22 Afghanistan nationals despite a court order that government should grant them asylum.

The Pretoria high court issued the order on Friday after a US non-governmental organisation argued the group might be victimised by the Taliban. The department, which claimed it was notified of the pending court proceedings after the fact, is challenging the order. 

Reacting to the court's ruling, home affairs minister Aaron Motsoaledi said his office did not think this was a case of asylum seekers or refugees but a move by the US NGO to undermine South Africa’s sovereignty.

He said this was not the first attempt by the same organisation to force the group into the country. He alleged that in 2021 the NGO  sent a letter to President Cyril Ramaphosa and copied him and minister of international relations and co-operation Naledi Pandor.

Department spokesperson Siya Qoza said the court reserved judgment on Monday afternoon and the outcome of the proceedings were expected during the week.

Qoza said they understood the 22 had previously been in Zimbabwe but left for Zambia.

Talking to Newsroom Afrika, Motsoaledi said they believe the latest move was just "another trick".

“If it is true that the Taliban are looking for them, what happened from 2021 when we refused [entry] for the first time? Where were they and what was happening [since then]” he asked.

Motsoaledi said when the US moved out of Afghanistan in 2021, it expressed  concern that people who were working for the country may be victimised by the Taliban.

“I remember very well them saying they will have to help them by giving them citizenship [and] permanent residency in the US.”

He said a few weeks later his department received a letter from a lawyer in South Africa who practices in Roodepoort, who said she was acting on behalf of the US non-governmental organisation.

The lawyer was informing them about allowing people who were arriving in South Africa entry to the country and said the NGO would pay for everything until the people were relocated to the US within six months.

“We took serious offence to that letter. The letter goes on to lecture us about international obligations. We took offence and ignored them,” he said.

 The letter was addressed to Ramaphosa and copied to Motsoaledi and Pandor.

He discussed the matter with Pandor and decided it was nonsensical and they rejected the letter.

“We didn’t ask the president or talk to him. We said something like 'this is not accepted'. They call themselves an NGO so we couldn’t go to the US government because NGOs fall outside the realms of government,” he said.

He said the department left the matter until it resurfaced on February 16 when a junior immigration official at the Beit bridge border post received a letter from a group of lawyers claiming to represent the 22.

“They don’t mention their nationalities or their names. They say, 'Expect 22 people at Beitbridge, they are coming there to enter to SA and apply for asylum. We request you to prepare a transit visa for them in terms of section 23 of the Immigration Act so they can come and apply for asylum',” he said.

Motsoaledi said a bus arrived carrying 22 Afghans and three Americans who were coming to South Africa to apply for asylum.

He said officials refused them entry but on Friday they arrived back at the border post with a court order instructing the department to let them in as a temporary measure.

“We were not in court because we were not served. We didn’t know we were being sued. Then we discovered the trick being used here. The court case sat in Pretoria but the papers were served to a junior immigration officer in Musina and it was served in Beitbridge and via email,” he said.

He said the official discovered after four hours that he had an email telling them to appear in court.

“Within that four hours, they already went to court to obtain an order. They showed the judge a stamp and said, “We have served these people four hours ago but they are not responding. This is an emergency. People can be killed.' They attached a document written in Arabic.”

He said on Saturday there was a court case in Pretoria with a different judge, and the department presented its case since the group was insisting they wanted the order to be implemented.

“The judge agreed we should not implement it and said she would bring forward the March 7 hearing.”  

“We didn’t take them in. We stopped them at Beitbridge and the bus took them back to Harare,” he said.

Motsoaledi told the broadcaster the country was being targeted because there was a belief around the world that “in South Africa everything goes”.

“You can do whatever you want any time. We hear a lot that they tell you the constitution of SA and the laws allow for everything and it’s better to go there,” he said.

“What would the public say if we have people they [the Taliban] are looking for without having the power to protect ourselves?” asked Motsoaledi. “Surely Americans have the power? They are the ones who moved to Afghanistan, not us. Who must clean after them? I don’t think that is fair.”

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