Press statement: LHR to challenge targeting of foreign traders in Limpopo
On Tuesday, the North Gauteng High Court will hear arguments against the discriminatory targeting of foreign traders in Limpopo by police and the Department of Home Affairs.
In the case of Somali Association of South Africa and others v Limpopo Department of Economic Development, Environment and Tourism and others, Lawyers for Human Rights is challenging the unlawful practice preventing refugees and asylum-seekers from trading and operating businesses within Limpopo.
We want to ensure the powers of the police, local municipalities and the other respondents are exercised lawfully and with due regard for the rights of refugees and asylum-seekers.
LHR is representing the Somali Association of South Africa, the Ethiopian Community of South Africa as well as several individual refugees and asylum-seekers whose livelihoods are being negatively affected by the actions of the respondents.
These infringements are being carried out in two ways:
- The Limpopo Department of Economic Development, Environment and Tourism is refusing to accept applications for trading licenses; and
- A crackdown on illegal businesses, known as ‘Operation Hardstick’, has been used by the police to unfairly target refugees and asylum-seekers.
Through extensive interviews carried out by LHR, we have observed that this crackdown has been used to exclusively target foreign-owned spaza shops and businesses. As a consequence, these traders are deprived of their only means of financial support and are left destitute.
“The affidavits we have collected tells a story of the most naked form of xenophobic discrimination and the utter desperation experienced by the victims of that discrimination,” said LHR’s Kaajal Ramjathan-Keogh.
Many refugees and asylum-seekers in South Africa are unable to find employment aside from informal trading. These traders provide accessible, convenient access to goods including essential every day food items and cellular phone airtime.
LHR has argued that Operation Hardstick is unlawful as it discriminates against refugees and asylum-seekers.
The method of the operation is to arrive unannounced at a spaza shop and demand to see permits. If these are not presented immediately, the shop is closed and its goods are confiscated without making an itemisation of the stock. In many cases, the trader is arrested during the closure.
The closures appear to have been the result of a directive from Home Affairs that asylum-seekers are not allowed to operate businesses in South Africa.
LHR is asking the courts to declare these shop closures unlawful. We are further asking the courts to require the local municipalities to accept applications for operating licences from asylum seeker and refugee traders and to grant these licences without discrimination should these applications satisfy all their requirements. In addition they need to consider the applications within a reasonable time frame.
“The situation of traders in Limpopo is desperate and gets worse with every day that passes as they are unable to trade in order to support themselves,” added Ramjathan-Keogh.