Refugee waits 15 years for a new life

DEMOCRATIC Republic of Congo citizen Ndelela Jeannine Kadima has waited 15 years for the Refugee Appeal Board to decide on her case.

The RAB is a body within the Department of Home Affairs which presides over appeals in cases where refugee status has been denied during the initial application phase.

However, it seems large backlogs have resulted in people waiting for years without getting an answer.

This year an oversight visit by the parliamentary portfolio committee on home affairs to refugee reception offices in Gauteng revealed that the standing committee for refugee affairs had a backlog of 200 930. The backlog on appeals to the RAB went up to 10 200.

It was also “reported that from April to October 2014 there were 31 429 arrivals, 25 112 were interviewed, 21 493 were adjudicated and only 3 122 (10%) were granted refugee status ”.

Kadima said she came to SA in 2000 after fleeing the political conflict in her home country and in the hope of finding refuge and starting a new life.

She appealed to the RAB after her application for refugee status was rejected. The mother of two said the delay has caused her many frustrations.

“Life is difficult because you become stuck. I have become a non-person. I can ’ t study or open a bank account. I have been waiting for a long time. I have nothing and no hope,” she said.

According to the Home Affairs website, asylum seekers can be issued with a section 22 permit which is renewable every six months.

The permit affords the holder the opportunity to work and study and protects them from being deported.

However, Michael Mwale of the Refugee Alliance for Justice said they are now preparing a court class action against the department on behalf of all foreigners who have suffered at the hands of the system.

“It is an imprisonment of the worst kind. It is worse than formal imprisonment. You are left on the ledge to survive on the fringes of society and of the economy, ” Mwale said.

Mwale, a Zimbabwean, has been waiting since 2005 for his case to be finalised.

He said the SA government made a commitment to take in refugees without planning for implementation.

“Because of all the chaos that has resulted, government is now overwhelmed. They must now pay because lives have been destroyed,” Mwale said.

The department had not responded to requests for comment at the time of going to print yesterday.