The aim of this study was to investigate unaccompanied migrant children (UMC )experiences, challenges and coping strategies in South Africa as they navigate their lives with no parental care and protection in a foreign country. The continuous inflow of UMC remains a major challenge globally and more so in South Africa. The inflow resulted in unaccompanied migrant children facing adverse challenges such as exploitation, marginalisation, discrimination and violation of human rights. In response to this influx, the South African Government embarked on several commendable initiatives, notwithstanding the national guidelines by the Department of Social Development, which unfortunately could not provide adequate guidance for social workers, on how to respond effectively to challenges facing UMC. The study was qualitative guided by exploratory, descriptive, and contextual designs. A sample was drawn using purposive sampling. Participants sampled for data collection were UMC and social workers tending them, from two shelters; one in the Limpopo and one in the Gauteng provinces, respectively. Data was collected using semi-structured interviews and analysed using Tesch’s eight steps of data analysis in Creswell (2013). The findings confirmed that unaccompanied migrant children do not receive satisfactory services from social workers who are mandated by the Department of Social Development to look after all the vulnerable children in South Africa. In addition, the findings further confirmed the contradictions and misalignment of legal frameworks that make it difficult for social workers to provide effective services to the UMC, thus exposing the latter to a continued plethora of daily challenges. Despite the magnitude of challenges presented by the host country, it emerged that unaccompanied migrant children demonstrate a range of coping mechanisms to survive the challenges experienced within the borders of South Africa. Prominent in the findings was the dissatisfaction of social workers regarding lack of clarity and inconsistencies in the current Social Development Guidelines on; Separated and Unaccompanied Children Outside their Country of Origin in South Africa. Based on these findings, recommendations are made for practice and additional guidelines were developed to enhance service delivery to the UMC. / Social Work / D. Litt. et Phil. (Social Work)

The thesis analyses forms and levels of social exclusion of Zimbabwean migrants in the South African labour market and society. The research reveals that migrants face social exclusion through unruly practices of public officials and institutional bias. At community and individual level migrants are devalued and stigmatised by the local South Africans and other Zimbabwean migrants. To some extent Zimbabwean migrants participate in their own exclusion as they are divided along regional and ethnic lines. The thesis proposes an analytical framework for understanding the social exclusion of Zimbabwean migrants emphasising on how devaluation of migrant identity narrows the existing structure of opportunity, leading to various coping mechanisms some of which are deviant. The thesis proposes a moral and pragmatic view in understanding the social exclusion of migrants from a cosmopolitan perspective where migrants are citizens of a global world. Using a qualitative methodology the research provides an in-depth analysis of the life histories of fifty eight (58) ‘documented’ and ‘undocumented’ Zimbabwean men and women in Kempton Park and Tembisa. The research was carried out in 2012. Migrants respond to social exclusion by using social capital in the form of family/kinship, ethnic and church networks. Zimbabweans mainly rely on bonding rather than bridging social capital. To a greater extent, migrant networks help them to ‘get by’ and simply survive. The few that have managed to ‘get ahead’, have made use of networks with South African residents and other individuals outside their migrant network systems. These have facilitated acquisition of fake identity documents, jobs and other necessities. Family networks are beginning to repel migrants because of the economic pressures they face leading to the weakening of ties among Zimbabwean migrant family members. / Sociology / D. Litt. et Phil. (Sociology)

Thesis (MTech (Business Administration (Entrepreneurship)))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2017. / Many people from African countries immigrate to South Africa because they perceive South Africa as a country which offers many opportunities and an advanced standard of living. Although immigrants often resort to entrepreneurial activities as a means of survival when few other options are available to them, increasing numbers of African immigrants are coming to South Africa with the express intention of starting businesses in the country. An unfortunate consequence of their entrepreneurial success in the SMME sector in South Africa has been manifested in outbreaks of xenophobic violence which have targeted entrepreneurs in the townships of South Africa. African immigrants are widely perceived to pose threats to the livelihoods of South Africans, either by invading local labour markets or putting South African entrepreneurs in the SMME sector out of business because of the competitive edge which their businesses often enjoy over those of their South African counterparts. Relatively little emphasis has been given to the socio-economic contribution which African immigrant entrepreneurs make, by providing employment to South Africans in the face of alarmingly high rates of unemployment in South Africa and by contributing directly to the South African economy through the payment of taxes. The researcher formulated this research study to determine how African immigrants identify and exploit business opportunities in South Africa by studying a group of African immigrant entrepreneurs in the township of Nomzamo in Strand, which lies some 50 kilometres to the southeast of Cape Town. The significance of this study lies in the fact that, to date, there has been relatively little research concerning this research topic and also in the contention that obtaining a comprehensive understanding of the successful business practices of African immigrant entrepreneurs could play a very meaningful role in improving the performance of South African entrepreneurs in the SMME sector and in normalising relationships between immigrant communities and South African population groups in the townships of South Africa.

The diploma thesis focuses on the definition of intercultural education and its key concepts and methods of its application within formal and informal education. It surveys the present situation in the area of intercultural education in Europe and in the Czech Republic. The thesis closes with a brief outline of possible applications for intercultural education within free time of present-day youth.

Orientadores: Maria Lygia Quartim de Moraes, João Carlos Soares Zuin / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Filosofia e Ciências Humanas / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-17T17:04:07Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Garcia_FernandaDiFlora_M.pdf: 1527594 bytes, checksum: 0fb8462a4b390edbcf3dbf76730c13f1 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011 / Resumo: Desde o início da década de 1990, os países-membros da União Européia tem se movido em direção a políticas e leis de imigração cada vez mais repressivas, punitivas e de amplo caráter discriminatório. A intensificação desta política bem como a militarização progressiva de suas fronteiras tem construído o fenômeno político denominado fortaleza Europa, constituído por muros reais e virtuais, pela vigilância constante tanto dos limites territoriais como do próprio espaço público e pelas práticas sancionadas pelos Estados de estigmatização dos imigrantes, refugiados e solicitantes de asilo com base em sua origem cultural, fenótipo e etnia. Neste contexto, o Estado italiano aparece como um caso exemplar desta nova política, pautada pela ótica da emergência, da exclusão de todos os seres considerados indesejáveis e pelo racismo de ordem cultural, que concebe o estrangeiro como incapaz de se adaptar aos valores ocidentais, sobretudo aos valores italianos. Esta dissertação tem como objeto a política italiana para imigração, cujo pilar principal é constituído pela instauração dos Centros de Permanência Temporária, espaço de exceção nos quais são confinados os imigrantes ilegais, refugiados e solicitantes de asilo, e nos quais se efetua a espoliação do estatuto jurídico destes seres, convertendo-os em não-pessoas. Nesse sentido, a análise destes espaços e da política que os criou pode ser capaz de revelar o sentido da reaplicação de esquemas racistas na configuração das relações sociais,bem como o lugar ocupado pelo paradigma da segurança e da exceção, nos quais se pautam diversos Estados europeus e que redefinem a política na atualidade / Abstract: Since the early 1990s, member states of the European Union (EU) have moved toward policies and immigration laws increasingly repressive, punitive and discriminatory. The intensification of these policies and the gradual militarization of EU's borders have built a political phenomenon called Fortress Europe, which consists of real and virtual walls, constant surveillance by both the territorial limits and the very public space and practices sanctioned by the States of stigmatization of immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers based on their cultural background, ethnicity and phenotype. In this context, the Italian State appears as a striking example of this new policy, guided by the optics of emergency, the exclusion of all beings that are considered undesirable, and by cultural racism that sees the foreigner as unable to adapt to Western values, especially Italian values. This thesis aims at Italian immigration policy, which main point is the establishment of Temporary Stay and Assistance Centers. These centers are states of exception in which illegal immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers are confined to, their legal status is spoiled, and thus, they are turned into non-persons. In this sense, the analysis of these states and the politics that created them may reveal the meaning of racist reapplication regimens in the social relations set, and the place occupied by the security and exception paradigm, in which several European States are governed redefining the political scene today / Mestrado / Sociologia / Mestre em Sociologia

This thesis seeks to investigate Senegalese migrants' experiences of xenophobia in South Africa. It explores prevailing theories used to explain the phenomenon of xenophobia and uses data collected via anthropological fieldwork to support arguments made. It is argued that a culture of migration in Senegal and the significance of migration as a rite of passage in Senegalese masculinity assists migrants to orientate themselves in host countries, and influences the way Senegalese are „received‟ by South Africans. In addition, Senegalese Islam (Sufi Orientation), which organises its members into brotherhoods, assists in the social integration of Senegalese men in Port Elizabeth. The men belong to the Mouride Brotherhood and the thesis shows how membership to the brotherhood provides a strong network of support for migrant men without resulting in the enclaving of the men in the broader social and economic context of Port Elizabeth. This has important implications for the individual and collective migration experience of Senegalese and influences the men's creation of meaning in their experiences as migrants. The thesis makes use of the concept of transnationalism to analyse the complex and multifaceted nature of transnational migration, arguing that migration experiences are influenced by a range of transnational factors and is deeply culturally influenced. The research suggests that migration experts and government departments in South Africa should take these complexities into account when formulating new programmes and policies for migrants.

Scholarship on Post-Apartheid South African literature has engaged in various ways with the politics of identity, but its dominant mode has been to understand the literature through an anxious rupture-continuation paradigm in which the Apartheid past manifests itself in the present. However, in the contemporary moment, there are writers whose texts attempt to forge new paths in their depictions of identities both individual and collective. These texts are useful in contemplating how South Africans experience belonging and dislocation in various contexts. In this thesis, I consider a range of contemporary South African texts via the figure of lifewriting. My analysis demonstrates that, while many texts in the contemporary moment have displayed new and more complex registers of perception concerning the issue of ‘race’, there is a need for more expansive and fluid conceptions of crafting identity, as regards the politics of space and how this intersects with issues of belonging and identity. That is, much South African literature still continues along familiar trajectories of meaning, ones which are not well-equipped to understand issues that bedevil the country at this particular historical moment, which are grounded in the political compromises that came to pass during the ‘time of transition’. These issues include the recent spate of xenophobia attacks, which have yet to be comprehensively and critically analysed in the critical domain, despite the work of theorists such as David Coplan. Such events indicate the need for more layered and intricate understandings of how our national identity is structured: Who may belong? Who is excluded? In what situations? This thesis engages with these questions in order to determine how systems of power are constructed, reified, mediated, reproduced and/or resisted in the country’s literature. To do this, I perform an attentive reading of the mosaic image of South African culture that emerges through a selection of contemporary works of literature. The texts I have selected are notable for the ways in which they engage with the epistemic protocol of coming to know the Other and the self through the lens of the Apartheid past. That engagement may take the form of a reassertion, reclamation, displacement, or complication of selfhood. Given that South African identities are overinscribed in paradigms in which the Apartheid past is primary, what potentials and limits are presently encountered when writing of the self/selves is attempted? My study goes beyond simply asserting that not all groups have equal access to representation. Rather, I demonstrate that the linear shaping of the South African culture of letters imposes certain restrictions on who may work within it. Here, the politics of publishing and the increasing focus on urban spaces, such that other spaces become marginalized in ways that reflect the proclivities of the reading public, are subjected to close scrutiny. Overall, my thesis aims to promote a rethinking of South African culture, and how that culture is represented in, and defined through, our literature.

Migration is recognised as an escalating phenomenon of human behaviour worldwide. In the Southern African region African migrations and migrants have remained a focal point of discussion amongst politicians, citizens and migrants themselves in recent years. In South Africa, a major destination of migrants from various African Diasporas, this renewed interest in the topic has occurred in the context of xenophobic related violence aimed at foreigners within the broader economic, political and social arena. These factors extend to South Africa’s relationships with her near neighbours. Thus, Zimbabwe’s political, economic and social crisis has overflowed into South African borders, contributing large numbers of migrants to her population. Previous research has underrepresented the perspectives of migrants and Zimbabwean migrants in particular. Zimbabwean migrants seek economic opportunities to better themselves and maintain the survival of their families who remain in their country of origin. They are transnationals who engage in continuous movement between one place and the next, supporting various livelihoods. Little is understood about migrant adaptation to their complex contexts. In this research project, content analysis was conducted of data gathered during interviews and participant-observation of Zimbabwean migrant traders on the beachfront informal market in Port Elizabeth. The maintenance of the cultural values and identity of the myth of the hero as upholder of household honour was found to be significant in the adaptation of migrants to their multi-faceted lives. The findings indicate that migrant life is indeed uncertain and ever-changing. Their resilience in the face of continual change illustrated both conflict and compromise between “social cohesiveness (and) social flexibility” (Bauman, 1998: 15-16)

In his thesis, Re-authoring life narratives of trauma survivors in KwaZulu-Natal: Spiritual perspective, the researcher investigates a holistic understanding of the effects of trauma on surviving individuals and communities historically affected by political violence in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Traditionally, the exploration of the impact of trauma on survivors in South Africa has been focused mainly on the bio-psycho-social aspects. The Bio-psycho-social approach recognises that trauma affects people on several dimensions- biological, social and psychological. However, Nevid (et al 2006:19) and Kaminer (et al 2012) acknowledge that these bio-psychosocial factors are incomplete for us to understand the effects of trauma on the individual and call for consideration of all possible pathways and account for multiple factors, influences, and interactions. Using qualitative and narrative approach, personal life narratives were listened to with the aim of looking in depth at the effects of traumatic experiences on the research participants, and specifically investigate whether, and how trauma affected their spirituality. The findings show that the research participants sustained psychological, moral and spiritual injuries during and after traumatic experiences. The results concur with Buckenham’s (1999:7-8) argument that trauma wreaks its toll in the life of a person emotionally, psychologically, spiritually, in our relationships with ourselves, others and with God. The study also established that regardless of religious affiliation, research participants turned to spiritual resources for answers, healing and recovery in traumatic situations. Therefore, the study recommends the integration of the spiritual perspective to reach a holistic model of understanding and treating traumatized individuals and communities. Although the study is localised in the South African context, the results have a much wider relevance in understanding the role of ‘posttraumatic spirituality’ in the re-authoring of life narratives shattered by trauma. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / gm2014 / Practical Theology / unrestricted

PhD / Department of Development Studies