Immigration to South Africa
[citation needed] The demographic background of these migrant groups is very diverse, with many of the countries of origin belonging to nations throughout sub-saharan Africa.
[1][2] The abolishment of the discriminatory Apartheid system, as well as subsequent migrant policy changes and social reform that took place during that period only helped to facilitate the influx.
[citation needed] Certain immigration laws have shifted since the end of apartheid, but some provisions of the mid-to-late twentieth century are still in effect, and xenophobic attitudes remain prevalent.
[5] There were approximately 370 thousand refugees in South Africa in 2019, the majority of which originate from neighboring Sub-Saharan African countries.
[4] Migrants residing in South Africa pay over $1 billion (USD) in remittances, accounting for 0.2% of the nation's total economy (measured by GDP).
[4] The highest levels of remittances received from South Africa are respectively in Mozambique, Lesotho, Eswatini (also known: Swaziland), Botswana, and Malawi.
of the population and represent different ethnic groups, including Zulu, Xhosa, Ndebele, Tsonga, Venda, Pedi, Sotho, Tswana and Swazi, as well as recent immigrants from other parts of Africa (particularly Zimbabwe, Nigeria and Democratic Republic of Congo).
Whites compose 9.1% (2007 est), being the descendants of Dutch, French, British, Irish, and German settlers who began arriving at the Cape from the mid- to late 17th century, immigrants from Europe who arrived in South Africa in the twentieth century, and Portuguese who left the former Portuguese colonies of southern Africa (Angola and Mozambique) after their independence in the mid-1970s.
[6] Most immigrants to South Africa originate from the neighboring countries of Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe.
In the 1990s, the RENAMO War in Mozambique caused an influx of migration into South Africa, and in modern times this particular group is often granted refugee status.
The Aliens Control Act of 1991 (ACA) is one of the last policies implemented by the apartheid regime of South Africa.
The policy has been critiqued internationally as a source of mass human rights violations and unconstitutionality, including minimal due process in entry, search, and arrest.
The apartheid followed a "two-gates policy" to restrict permanent residency and issue labor contracts that would ensure the eventual return migration of mining and commercial farming workers.
Backed by the ACA, the apartheid government rejected language of policies introduced at international refugee conventions, essentially viewing asylum-seekers as migrants having illegally entered and settled in South Africa.
[11] The post-apartheid regime introduced a new framework on immigration through programs such as the Reconstruction and Development Plan; Growth, Employment, Redistribution; the 1996 Presidential Commission to Investigate Labour Market Policy.
It also implemented three amnesty policies between 1995 and 1996, benefiting mine-workers, migrants with over five years of uninterrupted residency in South Africa, and Mozambican refugees who arrived before 1992.
[11] This reinforced a common assumption that lasted through later years and was upheld by the comments of public officials, such as President Nelson Mandela, which associated immigrants with crime.
(e) RETIREMENT: A foreigner who is in receipt of pensions and/or irrevocable annuities equivalent to no less than the minimum monthly rrepscibed amount qualifies for permanent residence.
——————— In 2008, a series of riots and violent attacks against foreigners of varying origin resulted in the deaths of more than 60 people, and the displacement of over 100,000 immigrants.
Leading up to and following the violence there had been a history of locals mugging, robbing, and beating immigrants, and a deep-rooted movement of anti-immigrant sentiment that can be traced back to the apartheid.
