The country missed an opportunity to show moral leadership and ubuntu
Source: EDITORIAL: Decision to stop Zimbabwean visa scheme is indefensible
The country missed an opportunity to show moral leadership and ubuntu
The decision not to renew special visas for Zimbabweans, which granted many nationals of the neighbouring nation the right to do business, work or study in SA, is worrying and does not paint us in a good light.
As our columnist Nicole Fritz pointed out, it comes at a time when SA has found itself in the hands of disgraceful treatment from the UK and other countries who have locked us out of travel due to the Omicron variant of Covid-19. President Cyril Ramaphosa has rightly taken umbrage at other African countries who joined the ban, saying they show a lack of solidarity.
But what about solidarity with the close to 200,000 Zimbabweans who had qualified for the special visas — teachers, farm labourers, spaza shopkeepers and e-hailing taxi drivers — and who have since made SA their home, rebuilt their lives here and started families?
The visas were first introduced in 2009 to allow Zimbabweans working illegally in SA to gain legal status. Many had fled as the Robert Mugabe regime wreaked havoc, leading to political turmoil and economic collapse. The move by the SA government to grant the visas for an initial five-year period, which was extended twice to provide a lifeline to Zimbabweans, was largely seen as a gesture of goodwill and many expected their right to stay would be indefinite.
But without much warning, the government has now told them to go home at a time when Zimbabwe’s economy under Emmerson Mnangagwa has completely collapsed and the political tension and civil unrest persist.
Admittedly, it is not SA’s responsibility to carry Zimbabwe’s burdens. However, as the region’s most influential state, SA is required to show moral leadership. Having extended the Zimbabwean special permits twice before, the SA government was clearly cognisant of the reality that its northern neighbour was not out of the woods. So what has changed now?
It is sad that the decision, weeks after the ruling ANC suffered losses in local government elections, gives the impression the government has succumbed to anti-immigrant sentiment, which has often led to violence. This hostility comes despite no evidence that foreigners are to blame for crime or a lack of jobs.
In fact, studies, including by the World Bank, have shown that immigration can accelerate job creation. The reason the SA economy has stagnated or contracted in the past decade is not because of the presence of immigrants.
Minister in the presidency Mondli Gungubele said while the visas will expire on December 31, holders are to be given a 12-month grace period to apply for other permits they may qualify for, which means they have until the end of 2022 to sort out their paperwork.
He obviously has not gone to a home affairs office recently, otherwise he would be well aware of their dismal “service” levels — those affected will have virtually no chance of their situation getting resolved. It is further evidence of how out of touch our politicians are. An additional problem is that many of those affected probably do not qualify for any other permit.
After its dismal showing in the November local government elections, the ANC government seems to be looking for easy political points instead of focusing on bigger issues such as economic growth and political stability across the continent, which is necessary to create a stable and prosperous region.
The decision is a missed opportunity for SA to show moral leadership and ubuntu, a philosophy that calls for compassion. But more importantly, SA had more to gain than lose by renewing the permits. It could then have used its increased moral authority to push for broader political reforms in troubled countries in the region, not least Zimbabwe and Eswatini.
Nobody is advocating a chaotic open-border policy, but to pull the rug from under people who had a reasonable belief that they had done enough to ensure their legal status cannot be morally justified.
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COMMENTS
If the wealth of Zimbabwe had been used at home instead of lurking in foreign bank accounts then there would have been more dvelopment and employment at home, better medical, better welfare and better transport. I am not surprised that South Africa is becomimg impatient with the vast numbers of Zimbabwean Guest Workers limiting the employment opportunitues for SA Nationals. Gungubele and his fellow nomenclatura have only themselves to blame for SA’s patience over ubuntu wearing thin.
South Africans truly forget who they owe their freedom to. Were it not for the Frontline states assisting them , notably Zimbabwe, who were prepared to send troops to fight the apartheid South African regime, they would still be in bondage. Anyway politics and politicians suck.
After Chikurubi I worked in Russsia. A close work colleague there was a former KGB officer who had been stationed in Harare as a supposed lowly official but in fact was leading the Russian efforts to make the SADCC effective in its objective to cease all trading and links with South Africa. He was withdrawn from this role when it was discovered that every member of the so called front line states had secret cooperation deals with South Africa.
Harper what an interesting report.
You must have had an exciting time in Russia.
But of course, ever member of the so-called front-line states had, and still have, secret cooperation deals with South Africa.
For after all blood is thicker than water as they say here in the UK.
And we prove that every time here when we meet a Zambian, Malawian, Swazi etc in the UK.