Some illegal Zimbabweans say they have been keeping jail for over two years in South Africa. A Zimbabwean national told Daily Sun that...
Some illegal Zimbabweans say they have been keeping jail for
over two years in South Africa.
A Zimbabwean national told Daily Sun that he and 14 other
foreigners were kept in holding cells at Ladysmith Police Station in KZN in
inhumane conditions as they awaited their deportation.
He was arrested in 2018 after he was found without proper
documents. “I’ve served my sentence. But, instead of being taken to the Lindela
repatriation centre, I was taken to Ladysmith Police Station,” he said.
He said some of the other foreigners had also been there
for two years. “There are guys from Malawi, Tanzania and Zimbabwe kept in one
cell, with just one toilet to use,” he said.
He claimed sick people were also kept in the cell. “Some guys have missed their ARV and TB treatment because
they are not being given their medication,” he claimed.
A Malawian man said when they raised their concern with the
police, they were told it was not the cops’ responsibility to release them.
“They tell us that Home Affairs instructed them to keep us
in the holding cells. We’re willing to go back to our countries, if they
release us. We can’t continue living under such terrible conditions,” he said.
Several attempts to get comment from Home Affairs were
unsuccessful.
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