Refugees in S.A Speak 2

We continue to share our findings with you . the views of the individuals are not influenced by our peer educators or by the the work that we do in the community . We allow people to express themselves. WWWA ,OR its partners CAN not be held responsible for any of the comments made by our clients .


From S
“Getting work’ permits: waiting in queue does not help.
Finding accommodation becomes a problem because the landlord does not consider the asylum paper
To get a permanent work becomes a problem because you cannot sign a contract for 5 years while you have a permit which will expire in 3 months.
Some employers do not consider asylum seekers.
To be a refugee is always a disadvantage.
Some companies do not consider our education qualifications
The transfer of documents is very slow”


From S M

Being a refugee in South Africa

“It is good to be in South Africa because it is a free country compared to ours. The good part of it is that there are a lot of organizations open to all asylum seekers especially if you are interested. For example if it is your first time, they can help get accommodation, food and further studying.

For you to be a registered refugee you must have papers. Our cry now is that our papers are being rejected and if you go for an extension they just give you thirty days to leave the country. Why should I go back to my country where I ran away from because of politics and I know I am a wanted person? I rescued myself and escaped death to a nice South Africa. Now, why do they want me back to that place where my brothers and sisters died then severe torture?

I was also a victim during the xenophobic violence and I was beaten and my property was destroyed. Since then I have not recovered such a nose.

You can have a chance of getting a job but expired papers are affecting us much. Another embarrassing thing is opening a bank account with a three month valid paper. They accept but after three months the account will be blocked. Now I cannot withdraw. We need help or to be compensated especially us the victims of xenophobia. It is very painful to lose something from sweat worth over R 2,000 just in minutes. South Africa is a good country to all nations and please do not forget to help us. Do not send us away until Zimbabwe is fine. God bless you.”


From Jef”

“To whom it may concern.
I think being a refugee is a problem because we are having problems in getting asylum papers. I have been at Home Affairs in Cape Town to get a permit. Now they say they have cancelled the permit. You have to go to Nyanga. It is very unfair because there are corrupt security guards who are working in hand with guns and are demanding money from us. So how are we going to get these refugee statuses? There is a situation when the Home Affairs staff only serves ten people. Is there any other place where we can go to as far as asylum papers are concerned? You cannot even open a bank account without an asylum paper, and you cannot find work.

Can the Minister of Home Affairs do something before the situation goes out of hand? The Zimbabwean people are mostly affected. It is very easy to catch these corrupt security guards. You can even put on plain clothes to assess what is taking place.”

Looking forward to a positive response.


From P. N

How I am finding things to be a refugee in South Africa.

“We want to live legally here in South Africa but the situation at Nyanga Refugee Home Affairs is pathetic.

Why do people have to sleep outside Home Affairs and not get assistance? Let alone there is no help desk where you can ask for the service you need.

People are being killed by the foot-bridge as well as being mugged of cell phones.

Zimbabweans are not being treated equally here in South Africa in respect of jobs, education and accommodation.

Why are they accepting us as refugees when they are not helping us? Yet we understand they get funds from UN and NGOs.

I strongly feel we are being treated like animals here in SA. South Africans should know that one day it is going to be them with problems and they will need refuge somewhere else.”


From N S
“We are here in South Africa for seven years. We are still using asylum. Please South Africa we are told we are not refugees. Just beeze Zim is not at war. He got a virus so you are not a refugee. So what can we do? Please UNHCR help us. Can you help us remove that group of Zim people then you can start work a new system.

On Monday 15 June we were attacked by a South African from whom we rent our house. We pay everything but were thrown out in the street, by that man my brother’s cupboards his wife and children and every thing they had . . This happened something past midnight. Now we still stay here in a camp .some times there is no thing not even water to drink , if I had a choice I will go back but it is just too far without money . So help us. I am a refugee now. My paper has expired, I am not working and I am supposed to renew in PE. I do not have money to go there. So what can I do?

From M
Being a refugee in South Africa

“The major problem is on the definition of the refugee. Being in S.A. firstly on its own means that one is running away from something which is life threatening, Being economically disadvantaged is not looked at as a life threatening issue here in South Africa. If one is economically disadvantaged it means automatically you are being disadvantaged of viable source of living. To go for a year or two without work is worse than living without access to drinking water. The South African government would consider me a refugee if there is someone holding a knife towards me in my country. If I am threatened by having no access to drinking water they do not consider me a refugee. Do they not realize that life is so short and being denied of good economic life is worse than apartheid to my life and even more life threatening to me? Since then in this century did they ever experience such multitude of immigrants and yet do not realize we are also refugees. I hate the word opportunity seekers as the people of Home Affairs call us. I think that they should help us .if we go into full fledge war and kill and burn down our nation , then they agree , we are refugees , must all of Africa go up in flames ? l ask the UN what is it that they want from us another genocide ? please wake up from your slubers, go find some where else for your genocide , Zim, will not be didtroyed by your deceptions ”


At Home Affairs, Nyanga


Nom: YK
Adresse: 5 Geneva Portland, Mitchells’ Plain

« Moi, en tant que réfugie, je demande l’aide au gouvernement, qu’ils m’aident dans ceci:

J’aimerais avoir une formation, une spécialité de métier que je dois exercer et j’ai envie de continuer mes études, mais je ne connais pas encore bien la langue. Mon soutien majeur est de trouver un pour avoir de petits moyens.

Auparavant, j’ai suivi les cours d’anglais à Cape Town. Je payais le train et après quelques jours, je n’avais plus la possibilité de prendre le transport. Présentement, je n’ai pas les moyens de me rendre dans les cours, réunions ainsi que la ou on peut faire un petit plus pour nous réfugies car j’habite a Mitchells Plain ».

TO BE CONTINUED