34 Malawian nationals charged for contravening Immigration Act

Malawian nationals have been arrested and charged for contravention of the Immigration Act after allegedly entering the country illegally on Wednesday.

According to Brigadier Selvy Mohlala, the 34 people, aged between 21 and 34, were arrested on the R 541 Road near Elukwatini on Wednesday morning, on charges of being in the country illegally.

Members from Elukwatini SAPS were working on the road between Badplaas and Nhlazatshe (Elukwatini) and while executing their duties, they stopped two mini buses that were trailing each other.

“A search was then conducted by the members on the two kombis upon which it was discovered that the occupants were Malawian Nationals without valid permits/ documentations. In addition to the 34, there were also two children, both aged 2 who reportedly came with their mothers into the country,” said Mohlala.

The Malawian nationals – 23 men and 11 women – were all charged for contravention of the Immigration Act. More charges may be laid against them as the investigation proceeds.

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“Preliminary investigation into the matter thus far suggests that the detainees were supposed to be in Mozambique. Part of the probe will also be to establish how they ended up in South Africa,” said Mohlala.

They are all expected to appear in the Chief Albert Luthuli Magistrate’s Court on Friday.

“We are very sure that if we can continue to work like this, then our ultimate goal of safety for all citizens can soon be easily achieved,” said Provincial Commissioner of the SAPS in Mpumalanga, Lieutenant General Semakaleng Daphney Manamela.

Speaking to Newzroom Afrika on Wednesday, Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi said while the government knew just how many asylum seekers and refugees were in the country, no one knew how many undocumented foreign nationals were in the country.

“We do have the number of people who are refugees in South Africa and those are under international protection. We have he numbers because we even give them IDs. We do have the number of asylum seekers in the country. We know the number of people who are on a work visa, and the number of permanent residents because we report their names to parliament every year.

“What we don’t know is the number of people who are illegal, if we knew them then they wouldn’t be illegal. They just arrived. We believe it is normal for any human being when you arrive in any country to announce yourself and say I’m here, and tell us what you’re looking for and we see how to help you. Those who are illegal, how do we know their number because even organisations in SA, including StatsSA are just doing estimates. Some are saying the estimate is between 3.5 and 5 million people who are here illegally, but we don’t have such figures, how can we have them because somebody who is illegal is exactly that. They’re doing something illegally and did not report themselves to anyone. Many of them don’t even want to be known,” he said.