Possible changes to ID system include 'reregistering' kids at 5
- The Department of Home Affairs is exploring options to prevent identity theft in SA
- Instances, where the ID documents of deceased minors are sold to foreign nationals, have been recorded
- In a bid to curb this, the Department is looking into registering children as early as 5
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The Department of Home Affairs says that allowing citizens to apply for an ID as young as 10 will help reduce identity fraud.
The Department has recommended that 5-year-old South African children should be 'reregistered' with the state.
The idea would be to capture a comprehensive set of biometric data at a young age to prevent instances where the birth certificates of deceased children are illegally sold to foreign nationals.
Source: UGC
BusinessInsider reports that this is especially rife in rural regions where the death of a child isn't reported to the Department.
The state recently gazetted its draft Identity Management Policy, which aims to upgrade legislation that is now over 2 decades old.
The proposed system seeks to have random Identity Document numbers or even replacing one digit with an 'X' in a bid to accommodate citizens who do not identify as either male or female.
The Department acknowledged that the system of registering citizens is flawed and that changes to how children are registered is a must:
"Any child can lay claim to the identity of another child and such instances have been recorded. For instance, there is a practice, especially in borderline communities, where birth certificates of deceased children are sold to foreign nationals. This happens when the death of a child is not reported to the DHA."
Earlier, Briefly.co.za reported that Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi is adamant that travellers using fake Covid-19 certificates will come short.
The politician vowed that the full might of the law would be levied against offenders after 17 fake certificates were discovered.
Motsoaledi was carrying out a compliance visit at a mobile testing site located at the Beitbridge border post on Saturday.
Commenting on a person who had handed in a fake certificate in order to gain passage across the border, the Minister was adamant that he should be returned, slamming the perpetrator as a 'fraudster':
"You can't just come with your fraudulent documents. The person who wants to enter your country with a fraudulent document is undermining your sovereignty, is undermining the order in your country, is undermining al the laws."
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Source: Briefly News
