Press Review September 2019
NATIONAL COVERAGE
South Africa apologises to Nigeria after anti-migrant violence
news24.com 16 September 2019
South African envoy expressed the country’s “sincerest apologies” to Nigeria on Monday, after a wave of anti-migrant attacks swept through Johannesburg and surrounding cities in recent weeks, fuelling diplomatic tensions.
A meeting with Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari in the capital Abuja was held to convey President Cyrial Ramaphosa’s “sincere apologies about the incident that has recently transpired in South Africa,” the special envoy, Jeff Radebe, told reporters.
Full report: https://bit.ly/2lXXLSo
SA dispatches emissaries to calm xenophobia fears
timeslive.co.za 15 September 2019
President Cyril Ramaphosa has sent high-ranking emissaries on a mission to reassure African countries after a wave of xenophobic attacks, the presidency said on Sunday. At least 12 people have been killed in the surge of mob violence targeting foreign-owned businesses and homes, mainly in and around Johannesburg since the start of the month.
Hundreds of economic migrants from neighbouring Zimbabwe and Mozambique have fled to shelters and Nigeria has flown 600 of its citizens back home after they were targeted in the violence.
Full report: https://bit.ly/2klaTRc
Xenophobia: Obasanjo Asks Nigeria, Others To Report South Africa To AU
channelstv.com 16 September 2019
In a letter to the President of the Inkatha Freedom Party, Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi, the elder statesman urged countries whose citizens were affected to table appropriate motions at the African Union (AU) and consider other measures if the situation is allowed to continue.
He condemned the situation where any African country encourages or fails to seriously sanction xenophobia against Africans in their country.
Full report: https://bit.ly/2mdmaDE
Nearly 200 Nigerian migrants repatriated from South Africa after xenophobic violence
news24.com 20 June 2019
Almost 200 Nigerian migrants were repatriated from South Africa on Wednesday following a wave of xenophobic violence that swept through the country and sparked sharp exchanges between the two countries.
A flight carrying 189 Nigerians landed in Nigeria’s commercial capital Lagos, with some of those onboard punching the air and singing their national anthem while waving pictures of burnt shops.
A recent Ipsos global study, coinciding with World Refugee Day, shows that 71% of South Africans tend to be more supportive of refugees seeking sanctuary, even though 66% of those polled doubt their motivation.
Full report: https://bit.ly/2kNxg1O
South Africa: Years of impunity for xenophobic crimes driving the latest attacks
org 4 September 2019
The ongoing and escalating attacks against refugees, asylum seekers and migrants, and looting of foreign owned shops in South Africa, is a direct consequence of years of impunity and failures in the criminal justice system that have left this vulnerable group exposed and unprotected, Amnesty International said today.
Full report: https://bit.ly/2kueTiq
SA needs genuine dialogue with Africa over xenophobia
herald.co.zw 17 September 2019
Televised footage last week showed hundreds of Nigerians queuing in Johannesburg to be evacuated to their home country.
It illustrated the impact of the latest wave of xenophobic attacks targeting African foreign nationals in South Africa on victims and on the country’s relations with the rest of Africa.
In the past, Southern African countries such as Malawi and Mozambique sent buses to evacuate their citizens and leaders condemned xenophobia in South Africa.
Full report: https://bit.ly/2kNrGwv
REGIONAL COVERAGE
Rwanda agrees to take in hundreds of refugees stuck in Libya
aljazeera.com news.un.org 10 September 2019
Rwanda has agreed to take in hundreds of African refugees and asylum-seekers held in detention centres in Libya under an agreement reached with the UN refugee agency and the African Union.
A first group of 500 people, including children and at-risk youth, predominantly from the Horn of Africa, will be evacuated in the coming weeks, a joint statement on Tuesday.
Full report: https://bit.ly/2lPKVWc
Lenovo partners with Jangala to connect education centres for refugees
intelligentcio.com 17 September 2019
Lenovo Foundation is partnering with Jangala to provide Wi-Fi access and hardware donations in education centres for refugees across Africa.
Jangala, a charitable non-government organisation (NGO) is working to meet refugees’ needs with its ‘Big Box’ connectivity solution. It creates Wi-Fi that is ‘easy to manage and scale’, to support thousands of users in a place of need.
The Lenovo Foundation has partnered with Jangala to bring connectivity to refugee education centres, ensuring that while people’s lives have been disrupted, they are not isolated from education, learning, and communication with loved ones.
Full report: https://bit.ly/2miJlMV
Refugees on road back to Central African Republic with cautious hope
businesslive.co.za 11 September 2019
Under the tarpaulin shading the back of the lorry, the heat is still stifling on a rough road for about 30 refugees travelling home to the strife-weary Central African Republic.
Potholes rattle spines and send up fine grit that sticks to the sweaty bodies of exhausted adults and small children and animals, almost hidden in a tangle of limbs. Yet the men and women look relieved.
They are glad to be homeward bound after tough years spent in the Republic of Congo, following agreements signed with neighbouring countries by the government and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees in July and August.
Growing up in Liberia during that country’s brutal 14-year civil war, Benedictus Freeman and his family fled into the rainforest, where they survived for years eating bush meat and foraging. The rainforest provided Freeman sustenance and protection — but more than that, the experience ignited a passion in him for understanding and preserving nature.
Full report: https://bit.ly/2lY7tnO
Liberia: Reintegrated Ivorian Refugees Get Durable Shelters
allafrica.com 16 September 2019
About 3000 Ivorian refugees who recently underwent local integration in Bahn, Nimba County, have received guaranteed and durable housing units to live in while they are still in Liberia.
On Wednesday, September 11, 2019, hundreds of residents of Bahn, its surrounding towns, and several other residents of Nimba, as well as personnel of both the Liberia Refugee Repatriation and Resettlement Commission (LRRRC) and the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), witnessed the refugees receiving the newly completed housing units with delight.
The Minister of Internal Affairs, Varney A. Sirleaf, told the Ivorian refugees that Liberia is on the right trajectory with refugees still dwelling in its borders.
Full report:
INTERNATIONAL COVERAGE
Improving the health of migrants
ncronline.org 21 June 2019
Anti-immigrant rhetoric permeates today’s political discourse and soaks through much of society. In this highly politicised context, dominated by debates on immigration and border control, understanding and tackling what affects the health of migrants, their families, and communities is often overlooked and underserved. These gaps in understanding the relation between migration and health remain a challenge that policy makers, practitioners, civil society, and researchers must collectively embrace.
Full report: https://bit.ly/2kEjqz2
Concerted efforts urged for African countries to ensure effective migration governance
xinhuanet.com 16 September 2019
The African Union (AU) on Monday urged African countries and pan-African institutions to exert concerted efforts to ensure effective migration governance across the continent.
The urgent call was made by Cisse Mariama, director of the AU Social Affairs Department, as she emphasized the need to invest in evidence-based continental migration trends and updates through improvement and investment in the collection, analysis and dissemination of accurate information and research on migration issues in Africa.
Full report: https://bit.ly/2klMJGl
Photo by Austin Distel on Unsplash
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