This morning I requested an urgent meeting with the Minister of Home Affairs, Dr Mangosuthu Buthelezi, in order to discuss whether or not the government is going to give Zimbabweans refugee status in light of the deteriorating situation in that country.

According to the provisions of the Refugee Act which came into force on 1 April, a person qualifies for refugee status if:

• there is a well-founded fear of being persecuted by reason of his or her race, tribe, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership of a social group; or
• owing to events seriously disturbing or disrupting public order in either a part or the whole of his or her country, is compelled to leave his or her place of habitual residence to seek refuge elsewhere.

Considering the state of affairs in Zimbabwe, where farmers and farm workers are being threatened with their lives and where members of opposition parties have been violently murdered, it certainly seems as though Zimbabweans qualify for refugee status in South Africa.

This morning the DP has verified with the High Commission in Harare that they are inundated with requests for permits and refugee status. According to a High Commission representative, people are queuing outside the High Commission from 04H00. By 09H00, the queue usually reaches about 700/ 800 people. It is at this point that the High Commission closes its doors because it simply cannot cope with the overwhelming number of people.

The DP has confirmed that no additional staff have been sent to the High Commission to alleviate pressure on the permanent staff.

It is therefore absolutely imperative that the government makes a clear statement on the question of refugee status and that it sends more staff to our High Commission in Harare in order to speed up the application process for those Zimbabweans who wish to leave.

In the event that Minister Buthelezi does not agree to a meeting, I will raise the matter in Parliament this afternoon. I will then formally hand over a memorandum to the Minister of Home Affairs.

Lauren Winchester 082 3201836

A DP delegation, led by myself, met this morning in Pretoria with ambassadors of key countries and representing South Africa’s international partners in three different continents, to discuss the unfolding situation in Zimbabwe.

The international community shares the DP’s concern about the crisis in Zimbabwe. There is a common desire to seek the speedy restoration of the rule of law, respect for human rights and restoration of democratic procedures in Zimbabwe. There is a common concern that events in Zimbabwe have the ability, if unchecked and unreversed, to destabilise our entire region.

It is a great pity that President Mbeki declined to brief the media today after his lengthy meeting with Namibian President, Sam Nujoma.

Mr Mbeki should not play hide and seek with the people of South Africa and the international community on Zimbabwe and our region. While there might be very sound and good reasons for so-called "quiet diplomacy" one is entitled, as a minimum from our government, to expect a statement of general principle on the issues surrounding Zimbabwe and on what proposed steps South Africa intends to take to reinforce all the democratic and diplomatic standards to which we adhere.

Continuous failure of President Mbeki to articulate a clear position in this regard will amount to a condonation of some of the most flagrant undemocratic processes and procedures which completely undercuts his own position as the architect of the African Renaissance and the development of a strong, stable and prosperous regional power block of nations to which we are committed.

Lauren Winchester 082 3201836

11 April 2000

His Excellency President R G Mugabe

c/o Zimbabwe Consulate

55c Kuyper Street

Zonnebloem

CAPE TOWN

Dear Mr President

It is with deep concern that the Democratic Party and its supporters here in South Africa have witnessed the escalating crisis in Zimbabwe, our neighbour, our major trading partner and our fellow member of SADC.

Article 4 of the founding SADC Treaty commits member states to uphold principles of human rights, democracy and the rule of law. As elected chairman of the SADC Organ on Politics, Defence and Security, you have been vested with an even greater responsibility than most, to uphold these principles both within the region and within your own country.

You have served as a member of the CHOGM review committee tasked at the Durban Conference with finding ways to make the Harare Declaration on human rights and governance (1991) more effective. Yet recent events in Zimbabwe suggest that your Government has little, or no regard, for this declaration drafted in your own capital city.

It appears that the SADC Treaty and the Harare Declaration have been violated in Zimbabwe in the following instances: