49 DRC Refugees Volunteered to Return Home Through Voluntary Repatriation Process, Says Motsoaledi
- Home Affairs Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi says a small group of refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo have returned to their home country
- The DRC refugees are some of a group of approximately 400 individuals who want to be voluntarily repatriated
- On social media, South Africans feel that the Minister of Home Affairs is doing a good job and this is a step in the right direction
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JOHANNESBURG - Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, the Minister of Home Affairs, has announced that a small group of refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo made the decision to return home on their own accord.
Motsoaledi stated that he welcomed the decisions by the foreign nationals to return home through a voluntary repatriation process. This small group of 49 individuals is part of a larger group of nearly 400 people who have expressed the desire to return to their home countries.
Source: UGC
According to TimesLIVE, they are being repatriated through a joint venture between the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the Department of Home Affairs.
Home Affairs and the UNHCR have conducted one-on-one interviews with the refugees to ensure that they are returning to their home country voluntarily. They also want to ensure that the individuals leaving South Africa will be treated with dignity and return home safely.
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The voluntary repatriation process comes after a discussion was held in January 2022 between Motsoaledi and Gillian Triggs, the UNHCR's high commissioner for protection. It was stated that the only way voluntary repatriation would work successfully is if there is cooperation from the home country.
That means the home countries need to take responsibility for their citizens when they arrive home.
Foreign nationals are feeling unsafe in South Africa
With organisations such as Operation Dudula gaining momentum and spreading across the country, foreign nationals no longer feel safe in South Africa.
Speaking to SABC News, Daniel Dina, the executive director of Africa Solidarity Network, says they are primarily concerned about the fact organisations such as Operation Dudula have no way of determining if an immigrant is in South Africa legally or not.
Dina says the police and the Department of Home Affairs should be making those determinations and should not be the organisation's job. Dina says it would be welcomed if law enforcement was doing the job Operation Dudula is currently doing.
South Africans react to the voluntary repatriation of foreign nationals
@kwayishe said:
"49 does seem like a small number but it's a good start. If we can get to 10,000 a month across the board it'd be great. #BuyaMthetho #PutSouthAficansFirst #OperationDudula #SecureSABorders #RespectSALaws #WeWantOurCountryBack"
@BenjiSeitlhamo said:
"Minister Aaron Motsoaledi is working very hard."
@TumiDM1 said:
"Others will tell us they can't go back because they are "used" to staying here. but they were not "used" to the places they spent most of their lives at. Just saying."
Hawks arrest Pakistani man and 2 Home Affairs officials behind a fake passport syndicate in Krugersdorp
In other news, Briefly News previously reported that the masterminds behind a fake passport syndicate have finally been arrested red-handed thanks to a sting operation led by the Department of Home Affairs and the Hawks.
The police operation took place shortly after midnight in Krugersdorp and two Home Affairs officials were arrested alongside the Pakistani man. The Hawks arrested a total of 28 people who are believed to be involved in the elaborate scheme.
According to TimesLIVE, the arrested mastermind worked alongside other corrupt Home Affairs officials in provinces such as Limpopo, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape and the Western Cape. The two Home Affairs officials arrested alongside the kingpin are reportedly his trusted lieutenants.
Source: Briefly News
