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Problems for undocumented children

Source: Kathorus Mail, 26/09/2016

Hundreds of parents, mainly women, many of them Mozambican nationals,
packed the Vhumbeni school hall to listen to Department of Home
Affairs officials explain how they should go about dealing with
immigration problems affecting their children`s education in the country.

Scores of parents packed the Vhumbeni Primary School Hall in Katlehong
to listen to officials from the Department of Home Affairs speak about
undocumented children.

When the headmaster of Vhumbeni Primary School, in Katlehong, Molapisi
Seheshe, invited officials from the Germiston Home Affairs to assist
parents with problems affecting the registration of their children`s
birth details, little did he know the exercise would unearth the
extent of undocumented children at the school and many more living in
the country illegally.

Hundreds of parents, mainly women, many of them Mozambican nationals,
packed the Vhumbeni school hall to listen to Department of Home
Affairs officials explain how they should go about dealing with
immigration problems affecting their children`s education in the
country.

Principal Seheshe spoke to Kathorus MAIL about how about 80 Grade 7
Tsonga-speaking learners at his school were unable to apply for their
birth certificates from Home Affairs because their birth details were
either never formally registered in South Africa, or simply because
the children were "smuggled" into the country illegally.

Seheshe said that he realised that unless the parents of these
learners, many of them Mozambique nationals living and working in
South Africa, are assisted in getting their children`s birth documents
in order, none of the learners would be registered for high school
entry examinations for Grade 8 in the new year.

"A birth certificate is a compulsory document required by the
Department of Education to capture the learner`s birth details as well
as for the school to register the learner in the national schooling
system," explained Seheshe.
"Many of these learners started school from Grade R here or at other
Tsonga medium schools elsewhere in the country, but as they approach
Grade 8, we`re unable to register them for high school entry because
they do not have South African issued birth certificates or because
their birth details do not exist in the school system`s data base.

And now we can`t obtain their birth details from Home Affairs
as their births were never registered," explained Seheshe.

Seheshe, who started as principal at Vhumbeni in March this year, said
the reason why the problem has been left unattended by the previous
principal was because government schools are not supposed to turn a
learner away because he or she does not have proper documents.

"As a result many of these learners are often unable to
continue with their studies after Grade 7 and instead, they then drop
out of school," said Seheshe, who described the move to invite the
Department of Home Affairs for assistance as an effort to find a
solution to the problem.

"Once many parents realise that their child cannot go any further with
his or her studies they simply pull that child out of the schooling
system. This is unacceptable as it hinders the child from continuing
with his or her schooling," explained Seheshe.

During the meeting, which was attended by immigration officials from
the Department of Home Affairs, it was found out that hundreds of
children whose parents were originally from Mozambique were in fact in
the country illegally. Many of these children were either born in
Mozambique or they were brought into South Africa illegally without
valid immigration documents, or their births in South Africa were not
registered with Home Affairs because their parents were themselves
illegally in the country.

Home Affairs` Takalani Khomolo and his team`s visit to Vhumbeni
Primary School was an important part of the department`s efforts to
deal with immigration problems. He also told parents and guardians at
the meeting that many of them could have their children declared
illegal immigrants and deported back to the countries where they (the
parents) were born.

"Any child who has not had his or her birth registered at Home
Affairs, will be declared an illegal immigrant who is in the country
illegally and that child could be deported. That child`s parents or
guardian could also face possible charges of harbouring an illegal
immigrant in the country or human trafficking," explained Kholomo.

Scores of immigrant parents and the children`s guardians listed their
problems which ranged from undocumented children to those brought into
the country illegally and requested Home Affairs officials to assist
them to rectify their status and those of their young children. Many
others from countries such as Zimbabwe, Malawi and even as far as
Zambia highlighted their plight and sought the help of Home Affairs
officials to assist them with their immigration problems.

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