Deportees jump off moving buses

via Deportees jump off moving buses | The Herald December 12, 2015

Thupeyo Muleya Beitbridge Bureau
Forty-Nine border jumpers escaped during deportation from South Africa by jumping off moving buses and vanishing into thin air on Thursday morning.

The group was among 322 Zimbabweans who were being repatriated into the country via the Beitbridge Border Post in a convoy of four buses.

They had been rounded up in Gauteng Province by South African authorities for violating immigration laws while others were ex-convicts who had completed their prison terms in that country.

The immigrants were coming from Lindela Transit and Holding Centre in Johannesburg.

Sources said yesterday that three people jumped off the bus near Bakwena tollgate along the N1 highway, while the second group made its escape between Polokwane and Makhadho towns.

“They jumped off when the buses slowed down along the highway in an area under maintenance,” said one of the sources.

Zimbabwe’s consul general to South Africa Mr Batiraishe Mukonoweshuro confirmed the developments yesterday.

“The deportation process needs to be reviewed to avoid such incidents. There are ongoing discussions to have all ex-convicts separated from normal over stays when self deporting. This seems not to have been done when this last movement took place.

“This, coupled with the perennial complaints that irregular migrants are not given an opportunity to collect their belongings, result in such actions. The escorts during self deportations are also limited to two or four officials who travel in their own vehicles and not in the buses. This also needs reviewing,” he said.

Mr Mukonoweshuro added that South Africa introduced a self-deportation process in October due to financial constrains in that country.

He said under the self-deportation process, the immigrants pay R350 in transport fees for them to be sent to Zimbabwe.

He said those who preferred being deported by air would also pay the prescribed rates by the airlines.

“The new system of self-repatriation has thus far been received well by inmates at Lindela Holding Facility. The inmates also felt that the conditions in Lindela are not conducive for long stay.

“Furthermore they also couldn’t stomach being in the facility during the festive season,” he said.

Mr Mukonoweshuro added that those without money would occasionally be deported during weekends in Home Affairs trucks.

He added that the host government usually stops deportation between December 15 and January 15 of each year.

“We want to urge our nationals to have relevant documents and to regularise their stay in South Africa to avoid unnecessary situations,” he said.

Prior to the self deportations the South African government spent R538 on transporting one person from Lindela to Beitbridge and would also spend R99 for each person’s upkeep per day.

It costs R240 to travel between Beitbridge and Johannesburg using public transport.

The deported immigrants are being assisted by the department of Social Services with warrants to travel to their respective homes.

A total of 14 372 people were deported from South Africa between March and November while 1 418 bodies of Zimbabweans were repatriated for burial between January and June this year.

In April this year the government repatriated a total of 1 200 people from areas within Durban and Johannesburg who were fleeing xenophobia motivated attacks from that country.