Home affairs minister Aaron Motsoaledi has annoyed both ends of the political spectrum with his clumsy handling of the Zimbabwe Exemption Permit issue.
The deadline by which Zimbabweans will no longer be able to lawfully reside in SA on this permit cannot come soon enough for Operation Dudula, while the Helen Suzman Foundation doesn’t want the permit scrapped at all.
Operation Dudula – which has branded itself an immigrant watchdog but is mostly just a noisy bunch of xenophobes — says it is going to the Constitutional Court to ask it to overturn Motsoaledi’s decision to extend the permit by six months, thereby giving affected Zimbabweans more time to get their papers in order.
The organisation says affected Zimbabweans have been given enough time, and that those who have not yet made representations either don’t have valid grounds to be here, or have consciously chosen to ignore “legalising” their stay in SA.
On the other side of the coin, the Helen Suzman Foundation is in the Pretoria high court fighting to set aside government’s decision to scrap the permits.
In papers filed this week, the foundation argues Motsoaledi failed to consult permit-holders and the public before taking his decision, that home affairs is “plagued by systemic backlogs and delays” and that Zimbabwe remains politically unstable.
It also argues the exemptions have been repeatedly extended over 13 years, a time during which people have built lives, families and careers in SA.
The issue of the permit, which was first introduced to legalise the status of the many Zimbabwean nationals already living in SA, has dominated public debate and social chitchat since its scrapping was announced by the minister in January. The deadline was initially December 31, but on Friday last week Motsoaledi extended it to July 31 2022.
While not everyone agrees with government’s evolving strategy on immigration, there can be no arguing that when decisions are made, they must be implemented in a fair and legal way.
About 178,000 Zimbabweans hold permits that allow them to live and work lawfully in SA without one of the visas provided for in the Immigration Act or asylum seeker or refugee status.
So far, only 6,000 people have made representations to the minister, and about 4,000 have applied for a waiver of the stringent requirements for a work visa under the Immigration Act.
With immigration such a hot potato in SA at the moment, it was inevitable that Motsoaledi’s initial announcement on the ZEP would evoke strong emotions, one way or another. But the fact that it has sparked legal action from both the pro and anti-immigrant lobbies could be a warning sign that the decision has not been made with the requisite forethought.
The Helen Suzman Foundation argues it was taken without any form of public consultation process or meaningful engagement. It also says waiver applications are highly technical and require a lawyer to put them together. This cost is out of reach for many ZEP holders, it says.
While not everyone agrees with government’s evolving strategy on immigration, there can be no arguing that when decisions are made, they must be implemented in a fair and legal way, with sufficient opportunity for public input and with confidence that government has the capacity to execute them effectively.
Poor communication and a lack of consultation will lead to frustration, misunderstanding, court action and growing tension on the streets.
Increased economic pressure and joblessness have exacerbated anti-immigrant sentiment, with some naive locals believing that once all foreigners have been kicked out, SA will magically transform into a crime-free land of milk and honey.
South Africans are all too aware of the deadly xenophobic violence that can explode when frustrations boil over. We have seen it too many times before, and the end result is always devastating.
It takes just a small spark to ignite the flame, and the haphazard, unconsidered way in which government has handled the ZEP issue is adding fuel to that fire.
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