South Africas asylum seeker figures questioned

Source: TimesLIVE, 20/06/2017

South Africa has been singled out for the skewed figures representing
the latest global asylum-seeker population according to the UN Human
Rights Council.


The UNHRC’s 2016 report on global trends on population displacement
which was released on Monday showed that the number of asylum seekers
in South Africa dropped by nearly 900,000 in just one year.


South Africa moved down to fourth in the world â€" behind Germany the US
and Turkey â€" for the size of its asylum-seeker population which was
recorded at 218 300 in the latest report down from 1.1 million in
2015.


The asylum-seeker population is made up of people with pending claims
for refugee status and stood at 2.8 million globally at the end of
last year.


That was a decrease from 3.2 million in 2015‚ but the drop was mainly
accounted for by a sharp reduction in the asylum-seeker population
reported by South Africa the UN report said.


Excluding data from South Africa which has seen variations in numbers
in 2015 and 2016 largely due to changes in statistical methodologies
there has clearly been a sustained increase in the global
asylum-seeker population.


Department of Home Affairs spokesman Thabo Mokgola said the number of
asylum seekers in South Africa had not dropped and that the department
reported both “inactive” and “active” cases to the UNHRCwhich then
only considered people who were “active”.


The reporting only focused on the active cases‚” Mokgola said.


“There are those who for reasons unknown to us have opted to
contravene the condition of their permits by not visiting the centres
at the expiry of their permits‚” he said.


The report said that South Africa received 35,400 individual asylum
claims last year‚ with most coming from Zimbabwe‚ the Democratic
Republic of Congo and Ethiopia.


Advocacy officer Corey Johnson from the Scalabrini Centre of Cape
Town‚ an NGO that aids refugees‚ said that the drop in reported active
numbers showed that the current system “pushed people into
irregularity”.


“It’s very difficult for many to keep their documents valid‚
especially when the adjudication process takes years.


“Despite the drop in applicants‚ access remains difficult for asylum
seekers‚ particularly with the refugee resettlement office closures‚
and many have reported to us that they have been unable to lodge their
applications when they visit the few remaining offices that are open
for applications‚” he said.


One in every 113 people around the world has been forcibly displaced
and needs protection‚ and 65 million people worldwide have been
displaced due to war â€" with Syria being the country worst affected‚
the UNHRC displacement report said.


“By any measure this is an unacceptable number‚ and it speaks louder
than ever to the need for solidarity and common purpose in preventing
and resolving crises‚ and ensuring together that the world’s refugees‚
internally displaced and asylum seekers are properly protected and
cared for while solutions are pursued‚” said UN high commissioner for
refugees Filippo Grandi