Programme Director,
The Executive Mayor of the City of Johannesburg, the honourable Parks Tau,
The Regional Representative UN High Commissioner for Refugees Mr SandaKimbimbi,
From Hector Pieterson Museum Ms Antoinette Sithole (Hector Pieterson’s sister),
Representatives of refugee organisations present here today,
Distinguished guest,
Ladies and gentlemen.
Programme Director
Let me begin by expressing my honour for the opportunity to address this important gathering.
This day, World Refugee Day, is of great importance to all of us as we pause to consider the plight of refugees the world over and as we do so we cannot miss the unfolding tragedies brought about through wars and intolerance.
It is a time for humanity to reflect and pledge itself to forging new paths towards harmony. In the world today there are too many factors that lead to discontent and divisiveness and not many factors that lead to peace and unity.
It is a goal which we as a country that is a responsible member of the international community pledged ourselves to, driven by our determination to contribute towards building a better and safer world.
As we do this, we should be inspired by the courage and determination of those who are forced to start anew in a foreign land due to persecution in their own countries. Like our hero OR Tambo and many others did in the years spent in exile during the long fight against Apartheid.
It is a history which reminds us of a crucial role played by other countries in providing us sanctuary during our pursuit of the freedoms that we all enjoy in our society today. As a nation, we recognise the supreme sacrifices that were made by these countries especially those on the African continent who were exposed to military action and economic hardship as a result their generosity and solidarity.
This year’s United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) report on global trends for 2011, is entitled: A year of crises. It confirms what we saw and continue to see every day on our television screens and on the internet with more people becoming refugees than at any time since 2000.
The report states that: “By the end of 2011, some 42.5 million people world-wide were considered as forcibly displaced due to conflict and persecution”. Worryingly the report further states that conflict in four African countries contributed substantially to this state of affairs.
It reads; “2011 was marked by a succession of major refugee crisis. Conflict in Cote d’Ivoire, Libya Somalia and Sudan alone forced more than 800 000 refugees into neighbouring countries, the highest number in a decade”.
This drives home the need for African states to strengthen democracy and improve the continent’s capacity to resolve conflict. The African Union’s (AU) commitment to finding African solutions to African problems if realised will give meaning to the vision of a peaceful Africa in which everyone can pursue a better life. We have to strengthen the capacity of the AU to do better- we have to forge a new path towards harmony and prosperity as opposed to war and deprivation.
For us in South Africa this World Refugee Day serves to promote an understanding among our communities of the reasons why people seek sanctuary. This is in line with this year’s theme of: Ubuntu has no borders.
Ladies and gentlemen
As we commemorate this day, 18-years into our democracy, let us also take time to reflect on the progress that we have made and the challenges that still face us in order to realise our commitment to protecting those who are forced to flee from their countries of origin for fear of persecution.
South Africa remains one of the most liberal countries with regards to rights enjoyed by both asylum seekers and refugees. In most countries neither of these categories of people enjoys freedom of movement and social integration. In South Africa, however, refugees as well as asylum seekers awaiting the determination of their status are able to move freely. Both categories of people are able to work and enjoy rights to basic services. Those granted refugee status have access to all the rights that enable them to integrate into South African society in terms of employment and services. Asylum seekers can apply to work and study while awaiting the outcome of their application to be finalised.
Consequently, South Africa remains the world’s biggest recipient of asylum seekers. According to the UNHCR number in 2011 an estimated 107 000 asylum claims globally – were lodged in South Africa making it the world’s largest recipient of asylum seekers followed by the United States of America (76 000) and France (52 100)”.
Like all countries, South Africa has sovereign responsibility to manage all aspects of immigration including the right to scrutinise asylum claims and turn down those which are not justified. There is no country that does not reserve the right to deport persons whose claim to asylum is unjustified.
South Africa is taking robust steps to ensure that asylum seekers are processed efficiently and fairly. Immigration that is poorly managed creates the circumstances that put both the host country and the immigrant at risk.
However, our asylum seeker and refugee management system has been under tremendous pressure due to this unprecedented number of claims. This is in part due to economic immigrants using this as a route to regularise their stay in the country. In addition, criminal syndicates that are involved in human smuggling and the trafficking of persons are actively involved in the abuse of the system. These factors result in a great strain on our administrative capacity and hamper our efforts to assist genuine asylum seekers and refugees. As a consequence the adjudication of these claims has tended to take long and in some cases years to finalise.
Ladies and gentlemen
We have embarked on a number of projects to address this complex challenge, including the review of our legislation and implementing a fast track capacity to process application status. We are executing these measures progressively.
Furthermore, we are strengthening our partnerships with international organisations that are concerned with matters affecting refugees including their security and welfare. This extends to finding durable solutions for refugees after a cessation has been declared by the United Nations and they are able to return to their homeland.
We are also in the process of engaging with neighbouring countries as part of developing a regional response to asylum seeker and refugee management within the Southern African Development Community (SADC).
The 100-year anniversary of the oldest liberation movement in Africa the African National Congress (ANC) reminds us that the South African people have always regarded themselves as full and equal citizens of the world and are committed to internationalism and to a better and safer world. The notion of Ubuntu is indeed premised on an understanding that humanity is indivisible. Let us live together in peace!
I thank you!
