The 1998 Refugee Act gives effect to the relevant international instruments, principles and standards relating to refugees for their reception into South Africa of asylum seekers and to regulate applications for and recognition of refugee status. A number of amendments in the Bill before us deal mainly with issues of definition and alignment and are in other words, of a technical nature. We accept these amendments. 

A matter of importance is the dissolution of the current Standing Committee for Refugee Affairs and the Refugee Appeals Board which are to be replaced by the proposed Refugee Appeals Authority.  

There is continued concern about the processing of asylum seekers which carries a significant backlog. The Minister responded to this by initiating The Backlog Project which we hoped would not only clear the backlog but also ensure that no further backlog would occur. We were therefore distressed at what appears to be a leaked report by the Backlog Project Team in the Mail and Guardian. We would appreciate if the Minister would comment on this matter.   

Furthermore, we would attest to the urgent need of more refugee reception centres and seek assurance that adequate funding and skilled staffing requirements are on the top of the agenda. Perhaps it is also necessary to advise our public to understand our obligations towards asylum seekers and refugees in terms of international convention signed by South Africa as a State party towards asylum seekers and refugees and this not only from a legal perspective but more importantly from a humanitarian one. We feel perhaps if there was better dissemination of these facts, some of the recent outbreaks of violence could have been avoided.   

South African's problems concerning migration are not unique in our global society. People living without hope of ever achieving a satisfactory lifestyle will always be tempted to migrate towards economically more developed states. At the same time, no country can afford to have tens of thousands of undocumented people within their borders. With the recent disturbances in Zimbabwe, these numbers have increased and it is our duty to ensure that the required facilities to deal with these possibly temporary migrants are dealt with as a matter of urgency.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT
Mrs Inka Mars MP:
083 303 6037