Refugee camps are an example of ‘post crisis’ rehabilitative systems, which vainly attempt to restore stability in a state of disaster (Azmara, 2012). Uprooted from their homes and thrust into volatile and unfamiliar surroundings, civil conflict and natural disasters have left millions of refugees around the world destitute in their host countries, stripped of their identity and humanity and left with only the clothes on their backs. Unlike in rural settlements, the urban settlement patterns of refugees in Johannesburg have demonstrated a unique gravitational shift from reliance on local government assistance to a strong and long standing affiliation with various religious fraternities in the urban centres. This has then resulted in the inquisitorial search of how well have these urban churches served the needs of the urban displaced communities? By opening up their church buildings to refugees as a place sanctity and solace, how has this spiritual affiliation effected the reception, protection and rehabilitation of psychologically and physically traumatized refugees and asylum seekers? Subsequently has Johannesburg as a city, made provision for the sheltering and protecting of refugees, should there ever again be a crisis of violent xenophobic turmoil in the city’s townships? This thesis seeks to explore the underlying differences between designing a post crisis emergency shelter and specifically developing a transitory sanctuary tailored for urban refugees. By merging the dissimilar approaches assumed by secular refugee aiding organisations and the religious fraternities, the design starts to illustrate the symbolic connection between refuge and solace; spirituality and rehabilitation, as well as making note of the harmonies that exist within humanitarian architecture and sacred architecture. By understanding these fundamental parallels, a premise is formed for the development of a unique and prototypical urban refugee centre, located in Hillbrow, at the heart of Johannesburg’s eclectic foreign national communities. The centre is comprised of several emergency relief facilities, rehabilitative programmes as well as an adaptive form of transitional accommodation all encompasses within a spiritual, yet nondenominational Christian church establishment; a gesture which serves to highlight the ‘curative’ relationship between the spirituality, architecture and the user.

Thesis (M.A. (Psychology))--University of the Witwatersrand, Faculty of Humanities, School of Human & Community Development, 2016 / Children often serve daily as language brokers for migrant families in the foreign context of host countries (Morales & Hanson, 2005). Although this is a reality for migrant families around the world, the phenomenon and migrant children continue to be invisible in research (Orellana, 2009). Dehumanization and subtle, daily xenophobic attitudes in the complex linguistic landscape of multilingual South Africa have created the need for children to interpret for parents and other family members even where the common lingua franca of English is shared and is the recognised official medium of communication. The perceived superiority of English and the arrogant dominance of English speakers (Achebe, 2006) have been associated with the new elite of black South Africans who speak fluent English and by extension, black migrant English speakers are similarly perceived as asserting dominance through their dependence on English. Analysing narratives of migrant families, this research project yields that the continual resistance to the English language and other non-South African vernaculars is interlinked with and seems to perpetuate xenophobic attitudes and dehumanization. The anxiety for adult migrants who do not speak local languages is often dealt with by child language brokers who mediate for their parents and other migrants in multiple spaces including informal (e.g. taxis, streets, shops etc.) to more formal spaces such as hospitals and schools. Playing this role suggests adult responsibility for the child, with a possible impact on family dynamics and relations. Although negative feelings of embarrassment are often experienced by parents, these were outweighed by a sense of pride for children being able to help their families, and the sense of security the family feels because of the children’s linguistic capabilities. Traditional family dynamics and roles do not seem to be significantly altered or negatively impacted by children taking on unconventionally ‘adult roles’. Having acculturated faster, understanding the language rules, politics and consequences of not speaking local languages, this research suggests that brokers function for the benefit of the family and use their skills to reduce anxiety related to xenophobic attitudes and dehumanization against parents and peers particularly when moving between spaces, for example, between home and school or work. / GR2017

A research project submitted to the African Centre for Migration and Society in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in Migration and Displacement March 2016 / Migration patterns in Zimbabwe and the Southern African region have historically been male led and dominated. Recently, however, there has been an increase in the participation of women in migration in search of improved work and education opportunities. This feminisation of migration has implications on normative understandings of motherhood, family and gender roles. In particular, it may necessitate renegotiation of family roles: fathers and other relatives may be tasked to take care of and nurture the children, whilst mothers find alternative ways to mother from afar, suggesting changes in mothers’ productive and reproductive roles. Against this backdrop, the study explores mothering experiences of Zimbabwean women living in Johannesburg who left their children in Zimbabwe, or who have had children in Johannesburg and then moved them to Zimbabwe. Participants’ perceptions about motherhood, the challenges they face and the ways they try to overcome them are examined. Special focus is on single mothers who are employed in the low skills labour market for two reasons: first their mothering role gains particular importance in light of the absence of the father to help with parenting. Second, given the nature of their employment, they tend to face resource constraints which do not permit full-time mothering. The study draws from literature on transnational motherhood and transnational families and in-depth semi structured interviews with eleven Zimbabwean mothers living and working in Johannesburg. Constructivist grounded theory was used to analyse the data. As a mother who travelled alone to study in Johannesburg and who has a child in Zimbabwe, I am reflective of my position throughout the research process. Findings indicate that while mothers displayed agency in their conceptualisations of motherhood in the context of migration, they nonetheless viewed the ideology of intensive motherhood, which portrays mothers as selfless and fully dedicating their time to taking care of children at home, as an ideal form of mothering. This created challenges for them as they viewed themselves as not adequately exercising their mothering role and subsequently falling short of being ‘good mothers’ despite the important role they play as significant contributors to the household income in Zimbabwe. / MT2017

Thesis (MTech (Public Relations Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2017. / This research analysed the use of interpretation services to address the communication challenges faced by Congolese asylum seekers at the refugee reception office in Cape Town. It examined the language challenges of Congolese asylum seekers, the role of the interpreters in addressing these challenges and the perceptions of refugees and home affairs officials about the quality of services provided by interpreters. It also discussed the implications for the outcome of Congolese applications for asylum. This project was framed around Bell and Reiss’s theories of translation and the general communication model. Community interpreting and interpreting studies complimented these theories because all of them focus on the intricacies of interpreting messages and the implications for meaning making, especially in the case of oral accounts. The research design was a case study and its unit of analysis was a company called Zeenab, Remy, Gerald, and Buba (ZRGB) Interpretation, Translation and Social Services, which has for years been the main provider of interpretation services to the department of home affairs in Cape Town. Since this project was a case study, it adopted a qualitative approach and used qualitative methods such as interviews, observations, focus group discussions and document analysis to collect data from respondents. These methods were suitable for this project because they provided unrestricted space for Congolese refugees and home affairs officials to express their views about the interpretation services and the implications thereof. All interviews took place in Cape Town between June and July 2016. The duration of interviews ranged from 25-65 minutes and the total number of respondents was 18. The researcher used a thematic analysis approach to organise, analyse and interpret the data collected from participants. This process involved coding, defining and naming and penetrating themes, searching for multiple meanings embedded in the data. After interpreting the data, this research revealed firstly that the main challenge of Congolese asylum seekers was to communicate their experiences consistently and accurately in English language. Secondly, asylum seekers blamed the rejection of their applications for asylum on the poor quality of interpretation services provided by ZRGB. Thirdly, asylum seekers had different impressions of the role of interpreters in the refugee determination process. In terms of scholarly contributions, this study hopes to shed light on the communication challenges that francophone asylum seekers and refugees face during the application and interviewing process. In addition, it can contribute to the existing body of knowledge on the politics of asylum and the acquisition of refugee identity in post-apartheid South Africa.

Somali refugees living in South Africa are the most recent targets of xenophobic attacks in African townships across the country. However, who are these new immigrant entrepreneurs? This report presents material from research on Somalis living and working in small shops in Mayfair, Gauteng. From their various reasons for leaving Somalia, the report explored their experiences of settling into the host country. The study looked at the experiences and challenges they meet while in Johannesburg. The study considered also the reasons why Somali refugees seem to be the primary target of xenophobia in South Africa. The research was based on interviews that were conducted with Somali refugees. The study considered the livelihoods of Somalis living in Mayfair. It explored the issue of clans that divide the Somali community. It also explored how these refugees access their legal documentation, health care and education in the country of asylum. The Somali community seems to be united however due to different clans that are found here in Johannesburg the study showed that they are not homogeneous. Somali refugees experience so many challenges in trying to make a living. They come to South Africa for safety and protection only to find that their lives are in danger just as it is in Somalia. They mostly involve in informal sector and this has made them become primary target of crime especially in poverty stricken areas. Somali refugees work and live in informal settlements where they face a lot of hardships. Moreover, Somali refugees experience a host of challenges because they lack integration in the local community. The study also looked into the Refugee Act that stipulates that safety and basic services should be provided to all including refugees; however, in reality this has not been implemented because Somali refugees face a host of constraints in accessing those services.

South Africa adopted a local integration settlement policy for refugees which formed the basis for the reception of refugees into the country since the early 1990s. This policy also laid the foundation for Refugee legislation that was subsequently developed to deal with the arrival of refugees including the applications for asylum and the processes related thereto. The fact that South Africa decided on a local integration policy in the early 1990s is an anomaly in that many countries in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region at the time and even now had encampment policies where refugees are kept in camps and have minimal freedom of movement outside camp settlements. Foreign policy sometimes plays a critical role in shaping domestic policy in various spheres. This research study has determined that South Africa’s Foreign Policy Practice both during the transition years between 1991-1994 and post 1994 played a major role in South Africa adopting a human rights based settlement policy for refugees. This was initially informed by South Africa’s desire to show the international community that the country was indeed adopting democratic principles and thus denying any role in the destabilisation in the region. After 1994 South Africa had acceded to international instruments on the protection of refugees without any reservations on the freedom of movement. The focus of the study is on the decision-making process that led to the signing of both the 1991 Memorandum of Understanding and the 1993 Basic Agreement between South Africa and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and subsequent adoption of the Refugees Act in 1998 to establish the role played by foreign policy and other foreign policy factors in the final decision of adopting local integration. Findings from this research further highlight the role of civic actors for both the pre and post 1994 periods. The study has implications for other countries in the region and beyond which are promoting democratic principles while curtailing the right to freedom of movement for refugees.

Although gender inequality is a major element of poverty, women the world over have showed their heroism in the role of both economy generators and family supporters’ by engaging in informal trade. This became most remarkable in South Africa where refugees in general and women in particular are living without either government or UNHCR supports. The following study attempts to explore business leadership qualities of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) refugee women living in the city of Durban. The study is the result of challenges that Congolese women informal traders are facing (family responsibilities, identity documents...) since their arrival in South Africa which hinders the development of their businesses. Additionally, this study identified a number of successful strategies for developing businesses and reducing poverty. This research used a qualitative method during data collection. In turn, both explanatory and descriptive theories were used. Congolese refugee women informal traders were the sample taken and were selected from the Congolese community living in the city of Durban. In order to answer the research questions, this study used in-depth interviews and questionnaires where ten Congolese refugee women informal traders between the age of 24 and 41 years were involved. Selecting respondents by the abovementioned ages in this research was helpful for exploring socio-economic challenges of the most categories of the neediest refugee women: widows, single women and mothers of 5 or more children, and so forth. These categories provided relevant information for being mothers and their daily socio-economic challenges in the city of Durban. In the line with findings, respondents on the questions related to business development mentioned the number of factors as hindrance to development of their businesses. Thus, they had no access to business training organized by government and NGOs, poor access to finance, lack of UNCHR support, and family responsibilities especially their refugee status. The study reveals the needs of both UNHCR and government’s support in terms of sponsoring refugees’ projects (including business training) and appropriate identity documents from the department of Home Affairs. UNHCR assistance together with local NGOs and appropriate identity documents are identified to be important factors of respondents’ business development strategies. / Thesis (M.Com.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2010.

Large numbers of migrants enter South Africa legally and illegally in search of a better life, personal safety and security (Pretorius, 2004:1). The research study explored and described experiences of refugees and asylum seekers in the host country, the challenges they encountered in the process of integration regarding families in their country of origin and their “new” families in the host country, the strategies they employed to get recognition even if it led to being involved in fraudulent activities. The research has also explored the impact of laws in the lives of refugees and asylum seekers for example the Refugee Act (Act 130 of 1998), the Immigration Act (Act 13 of 2002), the 1969 OAU Convention and the 1951 United Nations Convention. A qualitative research approach was used to frame the study, which employed an exploratory, descriptive and contextual research design so as to understand challenges experienced by refugees and asylum seekers. The sample for the study was a purposively selected sample recruited using the snowball sampling technique. As a means of collecting data semi-structured interviews were utilized. The eight steps as stipulated by Tesch (in Creswell, 1994) were used to analyse data. To ensure trustworthiness the four criteria as suggested by Guba (in Krefting, 1991) were applied, namely truth-value, applicability, consistency and neutrality. The findings and recommendations are made available by means of a research report The research findings were centered on the following themes: (1) Refugees and asylum seekers articulate a range of reasons behind the decision to leave their home country. (2) Refugees and asylum seekers express negative experiences regarding leaving their country of origin. (3) Refugees and asylum seekers experience a range of feelings as they enter the host country (4) Refugees and asylum seekers report that they and their families experience a number of challenges as a result of relocation (5) Refugees and asylum seekers employ negative and positive strategies to cope with challenges of relocation (6) Suggestions made by refugees and asylum seekers concerning the involvement of Social Workers (7) Suggestions made by refugees/asylum seekers to Home Affairs in terms of improving services to refugees and asylum seekers Substance findings: the results emerged from the data collected through the themes and sub-themes identified during data analysis. Conclusions and recommendations: Based on the findings conclusions were drawn and recommendations proposed from the findings.

Since South Africa was declared a democratic country, the number of refugees fleeing to South Africa has increased. While it is understandable that refugees would flee to a country with a Constitution that protects the rights of everyone within its territory, this influx of refugees and migrants also puts a strain on the South African economy. One of the main problems associated with refugees and migrants in this country is their illegal status. Failure to obtain legal status in the country can be attributed to their own negligence to attend to the Refugee Reception Office, upon their arrival in the country. On the other hand, the South African government also fails foreigners in that the service provided at the Refugee Reception Offices is not up to the standard promised in the legislation. A further problem associated with refugees and migrants in the country is that they are competing with South Africans for jobs that are already scarce in the country. A foreigners need to earn a living is the driving force behind entering the employment market, and often illegally. Where refugees and migrants do not have the required work permits, their employment is prohibited in terms of the Immigration Act 13 of 2002 and they are thus illegal workers. Until recently, South Africa has followed the same policy as other international countries. Illegal workers did not have access to the protection provided by our labour legislation, by virtue of the illegality of their employment contracts. This position was changed by the Discovery Health case where the courts focused more on the existence of an employment relationship as oppose to an employment contract.

With a number of international and intranational conflicts still unresolved and new ones arising, refugees will continue to be in need of protection. South Africa, known for its tolerant constitution, is likely to receive more asylum seekers in the future. This research seeks to investigate the experiences of refugees in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, as reported by practitioners assisting refugees in the area. The explorative study aims at examining the issues refugees commonly find challenging, describing positive and negative developments in the experience of refugees and discussing how their experience can be improved. An analysis of basic human needs theory serves as a framework for the study. The researcher conducted face-to-face interviews with the participants. The analysis of the data gathered emphasised the challenges refugees face in seeking to satisfy their needs. The main themes that were identified from the data include: a lack of knowledge and awareness about refugee issues and a misconceptions regarding different groups of migrants; current socioeconomic challenges in South Africa; xenophobia; refugees as a heterogeneous group; and refugee access to services. The challenges faced by refugees in Port Elizabeth were identified as access to justice and correct documentation, access to healthcare, housing and education, as well as xenophobia, police protection and crime. Recommendations were made regarding the improvement of the refugees’ experience, including educating public sector employees and government officials about refugee rights, sensitising communities about refugee issues, offering refugees language courses and providing them with an induction into their rights and employing translators in health clinics to improve access to healthcare.