John Campbell

Africa in Transition

Campbell tracks political and security developments across sub-Saharan Africa.

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Showing posts for "Immigration"

Misconceptions About Cross Border Migration in South Africa

by John Campbell
Zimbabweans recieve forms as they queue to apply for residence and study permits outside the Home Affairs office in Cape Town, December 31, 2010. (Mike Hutchings/Courtesy Reuters) Zimbabweans recieve forms as they queue to apply for residence and study permits outside the Home Affairs office in Cape Town, December 31, 2010. (Mike Hutchings/Courtesy Reuters)

South Africans often assume that since the end of apartheid, and the coming of democracy in 1994, there has been a huge wave of migration into South Africa from the rest of the continent. Stories abound of entire Johannesburg neighborhoods that are now Nigerian or Congolese–and that immigrants have taken over certain crime syndicates. There have been xenophobic riots against Zimbabwean refugees in South Africa who, with the benefit of higher education standards in their home country, are seen by township dwellers as competition for scarce jobs. Read more »

African Illegal Immigration and Israel

by John Campbell
A migrant from Eritrea walks in a building, used to house people waiting to be smuggled into Israel, near the Egyptian-Israeli border in Sinai December 25, 2010. (Asmaa Waguih/Courtesy Reuters) A migrant from Eritrea walks in a building, used to house people waiting to be smuggled into Israel, near the Egyptian-Israeli border in Sinai December 25, 2010. (Asmaa Waguih/Courtesy Reuters)

Following rioting against Africans concentrated in a south Tel Aviv neighborhood, Prime Minister Netanyahu has announced that the repatriation will be accelerated of some twenty-five thousand illegal African immigrants. Most of those affected are from South Sudan, Ivory Coast, Ghana, and Ethiopia, and include children born in Israel. According to the press, there are 52,487 illegal economic migrants in Israel. The Netanyahu government has been taking a hard line against illegal immigration. According to the press, the deportation of hundreds of south Asians and their Israeli-born children is currently underway. Read more »

The Central Methodist Mission in Johannesburg

by John Campbell
Zimbabwean refugees are silhouetted in the windows of the Central Methodist Church in downtown Johannesburg, March 4, 2010. (Finbarr O'Reilly/Courtesy Reuters) Zimbabwean refugees are silhouetted in the windows of the Central Methodist Church in downtown Johannesburg, March 4, 2010. (Finbarr O'Reilly/Courtesy Reuters)

When a measure of economic stability returned to Zimbabwe, South Africa dismantled its special treatment regimes for refugees from that country. It now requires entry permits, work permits, and imposes other requirements which, according to a human rights NGO, are consistent with international practice. However, xenophobia remains in job-starved South Africa, and the under-trained and poorly paid police often have been unduly rough with Zimbabweans. Read more »

Guest Post: Johannesburg’s Undocumented Immigrants

by John Campbell
Zimbabwean refugees cook dinner at the Central Methodist Church in downtown Johannesburg, March 4, 2010. (Finbarr O'Reilly/Courtesy Reuters) Zimbabwean refugees cook dinner at the Central Methodist Church in downtown Johannesburg, March 4, 2010. (Finbarr O'Reilly/Courtesy Reuters)

This is a guest post by Melissa Bukuru, CFR Africa program intern.

Last week, the UNHCR released a report claiming that one thousand five hundred would-be African migrants to Europe drowned or went missing while attempting to cross the Mediterranean Sea. The episode reinforces the common perception that throngs of Africans are knocking on Fortress Europe’s door every day with varying degrees of success. It also reinforces the notion of victimhood – that these immigrants are fleeing unlivable conditions, and that they are at the mercy of their adventure north. But the reality is that most African immigration is intra-continental. Read more »