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Fact or fiction? Examining Zimbabwean cross-border migration into South Africa
Forced Migration Studies Programme (FMSP) & Musina Legal Advice Office (MLAO)
Spet 04, 2007

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Executive summary

This report is a response to increased in interest and policy debate surrounding Zimbabwean migration to South Africa. This is the first time that post-Apartheid South Africa has faced people fleeing from political crises and economic deprivation in one of its immediate neighbours. As such, South Africa's response to these crises is a test of the country's ability to develop policy and practices that are empirically based, legally informed, and that effectively protect the human dignity of migrants and South African citizens.

The study tests prominent claims made about the nature and scope of movement and appropriate responses to it. Premised on a critical review of media reports made between June and August 2007, two teams of experienced migration researchers went to Limpopo province to interrograte claims through interviews, observation, and site inspections. Their principal findings are that:

• Evidence suggests elevated numbers of informal border crossings from Zimbabwe to South Africa;
• Recent statements by officials and media reports exaggerated the numbers of Zimbabweans moving across the border into South Africa or already in the country;
• The government has increased resources devoted to border control despite claims by several politicians that they are "not doing enough";
• Current official responses to this problem are inadequate to promote human rights, avoid a humanitarian crisis, and protect South Africa's international reputation;
• Statements by the Department of Home Affairs and others that none of the Zimbabweans now coming to South Africa are bona fide asylum seekers are inaccurate. Such statements ignore fundamental obstacles people face in applying for asylum. These statements also tacitly condone the serious violations of the principle of non-refoulement that have occurred in Limpopo;
• Proposals to establish a facility providing shelter and food are unlikely to meet the needs of the majority of Zimbabwean migrants;
• There is little evidence that Zimbabwean migration has led to an increase in crime in the border region;
• New proposals to grant Zimbabweans temporary residence permits are unlikely to address the immediate humanitarian crisis if they deny new arrivals the right to work or services.

The report ends by calling on the South African government, media, and civil society to dedicate the material and intellectual resources necessary to develop a human and effective response to the continued arrival of Zimbabweans in South Africa. This should include increased monitoring, and targeted interventions to address at least four real and potential humanitarian problems:

1. The denial of asylum in South Africa to victims of persecution, violence, and conflict;
2. Mistreatment of informal migrants by smugglers;
3. Poor protection of the rights of migrant farm workers;
4. The exploitation and abuse of female migrants.

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