Date: 24/01/2011
Source: The Department of Home Affairs
Title: SA: Dlamini-Zuma: Media briefing by the Minister of Home Affairs, on the discussions with UN special rapporteur on human rights of migrants, Pretoria

Thank you very much to members of the media.

Just to say from time to time, the UN Human Rights Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Geneva deploys Special Rapporteurs to various countries to look at what is going on in those countries and we have the privilege of receiving the Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Migrants, Jorge Bustamante.

He has today met with us, having only just arrived in the country. He will be here from 23 January – 1 February 2011.

Following this meeting he will meet with other Ministers in other Departments. He will also visit a number of areas, including Cape Town and Limpopo and at the end of this visit, he will have a press briefing ahead of his departure from South Africa during which he would brief you on his findings.

Mr Bustamante’s special mandate is to look at the human rights of migrants, so he will not be looking at the human rights situation in its totality but rather at the human rights of migrants. He was meeting us as the first Department since he arrived in South Africa. He will also be visiting Cape Town, Beit Bridge, Lindela and so on.

He is really on a fact finding mission to assess whether the human rights of migrants are being observed in South Africa. He would like to complete all his work before finalising his impression which he will then brief you on before his departure next Tuesday.

Mr Bustamante had initially asked to visit us around the time of the World Cup last year but it was not possible so that is why we are hosting him now. He will eventually write a report which he will present to the UNHCR in Geneva.

That was it for our discussions today.

Questions and Answers

Question Minister, was the Zimbabwean issue raised in your discussions?
Answer Yes, it was raised. We must understand that this was the meeting of the Special Rapporteur. Therefore, I cannot brief you on our discussions since the Special Rapporteur will be briefing you before he departs from South Africa. We discussed all issues related to migrants, including Zimbabweans.
Question Minister, did you discuss the issue of migrants and xenophobia in the country?
Answer No, we just talked about migrants in the country.

Question Minister will you have a meeting when he has concluded his visit in the country? Do you know which country he will be visiting next?
Answer He does not tour a list of countries, he visits one country, returns to Geneva, prepares a report and works like this. He is not going to another country after South Africa, he has to return to Geneva, write and handover his report.

I will meet with him again if he has questions that require answers after his visit but we do not have a meeting scheduled.