New laws sour SA for foreign students

Source: Cornelius Hagenmeier, - Mail & Guardian, 11/09/2015

The knock-on effects of South Africa`s new visa rules are hurting the
country`s universities.


The recent heated exchanges on the unabridged birth certificate
required for minors entering South Africa and its effect on tourism
have occupied centre space in the discussions on the new immigration
regulations and overshadowed the impact of other equally disquieting
sections. The consequence of the 2014 changes in immigration law six
months into the current academic year is rather disturbing: the South
African higher education sector has experienced a sharp drop in
international student numbers.


At one university international student numbers have dropped by 600 in
2015 and at another international student numbers have declined by
more than 25% compared with the previous year. Visiting scholars,
postdoctoral fellows, international staff and university guests are
also affected by the new immigration law.


This poses a serious threat to the internationalisation of South
African higher education and arguably has a negative bearing on South
African national, regional and international obligations. According to
the minister of home affairs, the immigration regulations are in line
with "the objective of managing immigration effectively and
efficiently while protecting the security of our borders".


Though we are mindful of the contemporary challenges of global
mobility and security interests and South Africa`s right to enforce
its legitimate safety and security concerns, we believe there is a
duty to implement efficient and effective processes that limit the
adverse impact of visa application processes to a minimum.


Concerns have also been expressed that students applying at different
South African embassies are facing unequal treatment in the processing
of visas and imposition of conditions. Visa Facilitation Services has
been appointed as the agent of the department of home affairs.
Overall, it has become more challenging to obtain a study visa, and
many students have been unable to meet the new, stricter and more
costly requirements.


Earlier this year, hundreds of students enrolled for degrees were
unable to return in time to continue their studies and consequently
had to suspend their studies. Formerly legal students became illegal
as their visas expired before legitimate extension requests were
adjudicated and, owing to insufficient capacity at the private
intermediary, Visa Facilitation Services, to allocate appointments to
applicants for visa extensions in time.


An expired visa means that students are unable to cross the border
without being declared "undesirable". Remaining in South Africa
without a valid visa leaves students in a precarious situation,
rendering them vulnerable, insecure, depressed and with restricted
movement, because of fears of being arrested and deported. Bank
accounts directly linked to visa expiry dates are frozen and, with no
access to money, students risk destitution. In some cases, students
have been on standby for six months with nothing to do except wait for
the visas that would enable them to leave the country legally.


These recent developments are in stark contrast to the letter and
spirit of the 1997 SADC Protocol on Higher Education and Training, in
which SADC members committed themselves to strengthening collaboration
in education in the region. This legally binding regional treaty, to
which South Africa is a party, commits state parties to "facilitate
movement of students and staff from the region for purposes of study,
research, teaching and any other pursuits relating to education and
training".


The parties agreed "to work towards gradual relaxation and eventual
elimination of immigration formalities that hinder free student and
staff mobility".


The new practices are also problematic in light of the Constitution
and other rights entrenched in human rights treaties to which South
Africa is a party. In particular, the rights to education, freedom of
movement, equality and administrative action that is lawful,
reasonable and procedurally fair are affected.


Furthermore, the new developments jeopardise South Africa`s
attractiveness as a destination for international students, as it puts
its universities` internationalisation at risk and adversely affects
their ability to strengthen their global position.


The new immigration regime introduces limitations to academic mobility
detrimental to skills development. Moving forward, it is essential
that immigration law and practices are urgently reformed to ensure the
human rights of international students and other international
university stakeholders in South Africa are safeguarded and to ensure
its universities remain globally competitive and can continue to
internationalise their core purposes for the benefit of South Africa`s
society and economy.


Necessary security checks should be executed efficiently and
effectively, avoiding undue delays and with due regard for
international students` constitutionally entrenched rights.


To achieve this, we call on the department of home affairs and the
leadership in the higher education sector to work together to resolve
the current challenges immediately and to avoid further damage to the
South African higher education sector.


Cornelius Hagenmeier is the director of the department of
international relations at University of Venda, Orla Quinlan is the
director of internationalisation at Rhodes University and Annette
Lansink is the dean of the school of law at the University of Venda