Programme News
6 May 2010
(Press release)
The municipal bylaws which have been promulgated specifically for the soccer world cup in host cities come into operation on 7 May 2010 and will remain in effect until 15 August 2010. Lawyers for Human Rights (“LHR”) has been monitoring the implementation of these bylaws and remains concerned about the potential for abuse of these bylaws by municipal officials and, in particular...
4 May 2010
(Press release)
We, the undersigned, condemn the Australian government’s decision to suspend its processing of all applications for asylum from individuals from Sri Lanka and Afghanistan, for three and six months respectively.
The Suspension Policy is predicated on a profound misreading of the current situation in Sri Lanka and in Afghanistan. It plainly violates Australia’s human rights...
15 April 2010
(Press release)
Home Affairs’ Asylum Reforms Should Instead Focus on Immigration Policy, Say Rights Groups
The Consortium for Refugees and Migrants in South Africa (CoRMSA) welcomes the recent statements by the Home Affairs Minister and Deputy Minister, made in advance of the department’s budget vote in Parliament, acknowledging the need for reform. However, these statements misrepresent the...
19 March 2010
(Press release)
The Johannesburg High Court on Wednesday 17th March ordered the immediate release of a family of eight asylum seekers who fled the Taliban in Afghanistan, after more than four months in detention and numerous attempts by Home Affairs to illegally return them to Afghanistan. The two parents, their five minor children, and the oldest daughter’s fiancé, also a minor, were arrested...
1 March 2010
(Press release)
In the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria, Rabie J today endorsed the eviction of approximately 300–400 individuals occupying Portion 25 of the farm of Mooiplaats, Itireleng. The court ordered that the abovementioned property, owned by Golden Thread Limited, be vacated by 29 March 2010.
The court highlighted among other factors: the violation of Golden Thread’s property...
25 February 2010
(Press release)
The Supreme Court of Appeal gave a scathing rebuke to the Department of Home Affairs on Wednesday and ordered the immediate release of an Ethiopian asylum seeker who has been detained at the Lindela Repatriation Centre for more than 275 days.
The appellant is an ethnic Oromo who was in prison in Ethiopia because of his role as an Oromo Liberation Front political activist. He first sought...
15 February 2010
(News)
NINE-year-old Pule Mahese and his family have been sleeping under the stars in Bremmer Street, Claremont, for the past two weeks since their shack was demolished by a service provider of the Tshwane Metro Council, but they may soon have a roof over their head again. In spite of sleeping out in the open, little Pule has not missed a single day of school at Tuinerand Primary, which he...
9 February 2010
(Press release)
The Consortium for Refugees and Migrants in South Africa (CoRMSA) is extremely concerned by the
renewed xenophobic violence which has taken place in Siyathemba, Balfour. Last night, shops
owned by foreign nationals in the area were attacked and looted by a large mob, reportedly after a
demonstration against the local mining industry. The violence resulted in a number of shops being
looted and...
9 February 2010
(Press release)
Amnesty International deplores the failure of the police at local and provincial level to protect
the safety and property of refugees living in the Siyathemba/Balfour area of Mpumalanga
province. Last night, for the second time in less than eight months, refugees and migrants
were forced to flee the area after receiving threats. An armed crowd of several hundred looted
and damaged their shops and...
8 February 2010
(News)
DESPONDENT parents will turn to the Pretoria High Court in a bid to force the Limpopo MEC for education to reopen a farm school which was forced to close its doors after 47 years. The parents are all farm workers and parents of children who, up until the end of last year, attended the Seribane Primary School on the farm Marakeli in Limpopo. The farm belongs to South African National Parks....