‘Tighten up SA borders’
The parliamentary portfolio committee on home affairs wants to clamp down on illegal and undocumented immigrants in a move to implement strict immigration laws.
‘It’s untenable that a country can have large numbers of undocumented immigrants.’
The parliamentary portfolio committee on home affairs wants stricter control of the South African borders and documentation of everyone passing through the ports of entry.
The announcement by the committee came as pressure mounted for the South African authorities, particularly home affairs. to strictly implement the
immigration laws to prevent illegal and undocumented immigrants from entering the country.
The committee’s quick response followed the criticism of home affairs by Johannesburg mayor Herman Mashaba for its slackness in dealing with illegal and undocumented immigrants in the city.
Mashaba put pressure on the committee when he wrote a letter asking for its intervention after home affairs failed to act to tighten controls at the borders.
Mashaba asked the committee to increase its focus on the matter due to reported increased lawlessness involving some immigrants.
Last week foreign nationals stoned police in the Johannesburg CBD after law enforcers came to confiscate counterfeit goods from vendors.
The confrontation against the police sparked an outcry from authorities, including national, provincial and local governments, various political parties and a number of civil society organisations.
Home affairs was further criticised for the illegal immigrants that had filled the country’s major urban centres like Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban and Cape Town.
Chairperson Advocate Bongani Bongo said yesterday his committee wanted to strengthen the oversight on various aspects of the department’s work, especially around immigration
He called for the full implementation of immigration laws and regulations to ensure that everyone within the borders of South Africa is documented. He said the information gathered through documentation was essential for other government departments and non-governmental organisations to plan their work effectively.
“The portfolio committee has committed itself to strengthening oversight on various aspects of the department’s work, especially around immigration.
“The national development plan is clear on the advantages of legal and developmental migration, and the intention is to strengthen the department’s work in this area,” he said.
“The committee is clear that immigration should be legal and it wants the department to strengthen procedures for processing immigrants’ applications.
“It is untenable that a country can have large numbers of undocumented immigrants and nothing is done about it.”
There is a plan to implement a border management authority which Bongo said was necessary to safeguard the country borders.
The committee wanted a seamless process in and out of the country as a way to curb illegal immigration.
They also want to see capacity enhancement given priority at immigration services inspectorate, which was currently understaffed.
The committee called for the fight against forgery and corruption to be strengthened, starting within home affairs.
The committee will conduct an oversight visit to Gauteng from August 26-30 to hold discussions with various stakeholders.