Chairperson, hon Ministers, members of this House, yesterday in the Joint Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs, the department admitted that South Africa will have one of the strictest visa regulations in the world. In a desperate move to look tough on immigration, the Department of Home Affairs is using child trafficking as a red herring to an enforcement problem along South Africa's borders. It is with complete disregard for the need for proper regulatory impact assessments or sound research on best practice on how to control South Africa's borders that these regulations are being implemented.
After several critical questions posed to the director-general yesterday, it is, once again, clear that the Department of Home Affairs did no research before the suggested regulations were put in place. I would like to take you back a few months to illustrate this very point.
On 26 May 2014, South Africa's new immigration regulations, as well as the Immigration Amendment Act of 2011, came into effect, with merely three weeks given for comment and no opportunity for stakeholder engagement. With all the complaints and concerns received, the DA-led Western Cape Provincial Parliament's Standing Committee on Economic Opportunities, Tourism and Agriculture, of which I am the Chairperson, unanimously - including the ANC members - resolved to consider the negative impact of these new visa regulations, on 27 August 2014. This would be done by hosting two days of public hearings and engaging with stakeholders across all industries to determine the extent of the impact of the regulations across the economy.
The impact seemed to suggest that the implications were far-reaching. The 79-page report here provides conclusive findings on the impact of these regulations, the issue around capacity constraints, the question around human rights abuse and litigation regarding learners being kept out of schools and classified as undesirable, the concerns around the unabridged certificates and recommendations made to the provincial Parliament and to the National Assembly. The report came to the conclusion that the new immigration regulations would negatively impact on every level of South Africa's economy and on the National Development Plan goal to create 1 million jobs by 2030.
Minister Gigaba has stated that the amendments were in the best interests of South Africa's security, particularly in combating human trafficking - which the Minister alludes to on more than one occasion - while ensuring economic development and prosperity. At the time, Minister Hanekom could not comment, but said that South Africa's arrival numbers had been spared, as the system has not kicked in. However, he conceded, "Like Ebola, we do not know the full impact". He was so wrong. Minister Hanekom came out publicly, stating:
Tourism arrival figures show a drop in the number of visitors from countries that require a visa to enter South Africa. So it would be difficult not to conclude that, in fact, the visa regulations are having a negative impact. And it's not something I would wish to sweep under the carpet. We are worried about it.
Minister Hanekom was quite right, as Sun International are predicting a 60% to 70% plummet in tourist traffic volumes to South Africa from areas such as China, Russia and India. While the world moves towards visa openness, South Africa does a U-turn and at present lags behind the world average in terms of the most open regions. In our very own region, Mauritius is considered as one of the most open countries in the world.
The greatest challenge to human trafficking is not a lack of legislation, but rather the failure to enforce existing legislation. How many incidents of child trafficking or human trafficking have Home Affairs intercepted in the past 12 months, when 22 million passenger movements at O R Tambo International Airport and 12 million passenger movements at Cape Town International Airport have occurred over the past 12 months? How many such cases have been intercepted at our country's border crossings, where millions pass through, annually?
Despite requests for more information, the Department of Home Affairs remains tight-lipped and vague about just how pervasive this really is. The director-general has stated that an estimated 30 000 minors are trafficked into South Africa, every year. Yet, on the risks of child trafficking in South Africa, the International Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect has reported that there are no credible figures available in South Africa. So, I question the department's rash bandying about of figures that have no credibility.
The 2014 Trafficking in Persons Report states that South African citizens and foreign nationals are subjected to human trafficking, mainly within the country. The Prevention and Combating of Trafficking in Persons Act, the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Act, its amending Act and the Child Amendment Act all specifically contain legislation around the enforcement of this human rights issue.
It goes on to state that enforcement seems to be the greatest challenge and accuses the SA Police Service of a serious lack of capacity and widespread corruption among the police force, which has prevented progress in antitrafficking law-enforcement efforts. To date, the report indicates that South Africa is yet to prosecute successfully any large international syndicates in South Africa.
While we recognise human trafficking as a hideous crime that must be acted upon, why is Minister Gigaba using visa regulations as a blanket measure to fix his porous borders? Is this not a matter of enforcement that must be looked at? After all, the legislation is already in place to ensure that enforcement is put into operation.
Therefore, while human and child trafficking should be condemned in the strongest sense, it is imperative that we guard against a situation where new immigration regulations have a severe impact on the economy. Real human traffickers don't follow legitimate and documented methods of travel, but cross borders in illegitimate and clandestine circumstances. The regulations won't prevent this, and I encourage you to read this morning's article on africacheck.org.
So, I question Minister Gigaba and his department's real motive. I ask the Minister this: Is this piece of legislation not about preventing some 465 000 children crossing our land borders from neighbouring countries, as illegal immigrants, to prevent them having access to South African schools and our social grant system? I ask the Minister again, why has the Department of Home Affairs decided to introduce the strictest of measures to minors who are travelling? Why can South Africa not merely insist on a letter of consent from both parents, as is the international benchmark in countries such as Canada, the USA and Australia?
The Department of Home Affairs has yet to meet with any representatives from our travel and tourism organisations. Even President Zuma, in his state of the nation address, said that the government would review the country's immigration policy to strike a balance between national security and growth in tourism. Yet, no further information has been forthcoming, according to stakeholders, and standard operating procedures were only sent to airlines a week ago, with three subsequent amendments in the past seven days.
In the absence of any proper preparations or consultations with the industry or affected stakeholders, the Department of Home Affairs is about to make a serious mistake that will cost South Africa thousands and thousands of jobs. The Minister will argue that the DA prioritises profits before children, but in truth, unabridged birth certificates will save no children. They will merely create more red tape and cost thousands of parents their jobs. Minister Gigaba, rather conduct a study on the nature of cross-border illicit activities, such as human and child trafficking. Close your porous borders through proper control, but leave our tourism and economy alone. I thank you. [Applause.]