Cope call for refugee camps stonewalled

PARLIAMENT has slammed Cope for its call for the setting up of refugee camps to allow for the accommodation of illegal immigrants to relieve pressure on the country’s towns and cities.

The portfolio committee on home affairs said yesterday that the problem lay with the country’s porous borders and that government should tighten controls.

Chairperson of the committee Hlomane Chauke said a decision was taken years ago not to implement refugee camps, but set up centres internally to allow for the registration and documentation of immigrants.

“The issue of refugees and our approach is that we are not going to create refugee camps. That is a decision we took as early as 1994. The arrangement is that everyone must have access to refugee centres to allow for registration. We have a policy of internal integration,” said Chauke.

“The refugee centres we have now are non-functional. The issue we must deal with seriously is the issue of undocumented persons. The biggest problem we must address is the people who enter the country and are undocumented,” he said.

He said it was easy for people from outside to move in and out of South Africa.

“With the new regulatory regime we are introducing we are going to look at the borderline,” said Chauke.

This was in reference to the passing of a law in Parliament last year to allow for the setting up of the Border Management Authority.

The agency will integrate all departments managing the country’s borders under one roof.

Under the current arrangement the Department of Home Affairs, the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the South African Revenue Service, the Department of Health and others work as standalone departments at the borders.

Chauke said this will tighten measures to control the borders. He said it cannot be the responsibility of Home Affairs alone to man the borders. Other departments had to pull together.

“Let us all come together to ensure that there is proper management of the borderline,” said Chauke.

Cope raised the issue of refugee camps amid a surge in the number of foreigners.

Recently, politicians have also raised concern about the over-stretched public services.

They said in recent figures it showed in the children born in Tembisa, out of 700, 400 were from outside the country.