Chairperson and hon members, I rise to support the Minister's address to this chamber of Parliament today, and will in my address concern myself with the issue of asylumseeker management, the work of the Film and Publication Board, FPB, and the legal services of the department.
Some of you may know that the Iziko Museum is hosting a wonderful exhibition of the life of the great Oliver Tambo. Those of you who have not been to view this exhibition should do yourselves a favour and do so. It documents the life and times of one of our foremost leaders, who spent over 30 years of his life as a refugee. [Interjections.]
In a nutshell, it is our commitment to make our system of asylum management better able to meet the needs of genuine refugees and to prevent and eventually eradicate the abuse of the refugee regime mainly by unskilled work seekers, but also elements that mean harm to our country and people. The Minister mentioned in her speech some of the plans with regard to the Southern African Development Community nationals and this will certainly allow for better management of immigrants from these countries and free up capacity in our asylum centres, which can then be directed at better service to and integrating initiatives for genuine refugees.
This is the long-term vision. In the coming year, we will concentrate on developing better synergies between the Refugee Status Determination Officers, RSDOs, the Refugee Appeals Board and the Standing Committee on Refugee Affairs, SCRA, in our centres. In our ongoing efforts to curb rampant bribery and corruption in our refugee centres, we will introduce new high security permits for refugees and asylum seekers.
Permits will be printed on paper manufactured only for the department and will contain a series of security features such as barcodes and watermarks. Any attempt to tamper with personalised details on such a permit will immediately discolour the document.
We will introduce a track-and-trace capability to monitor the processing of asylum seeker applications at all our centres. This will give asylum applicants information on their cellphones and keep them abreast of the progress made in processing their applications. It will also facilitate good management practices and give our managers immediate access to information on backlogs and other vital data.
Coming now to what we are able to report as our achievements in the last twelve months: Firstly, we have implemented an agreement concluded with the major banks, enabling them to perform online verification of the identities of refugees and asylum seekers. This will enable this category of people to access financial services while awaiting adjudication in our country.
We implemented a fast-track system at the Durban Refugee Reception Centre and are doing likewise in Musina and Pretoria. Our preliminary findings indicate very positive trends in that the numbers of asylum seeker applications have decreased quite dramatically, particularly in the Durban office.
We are pleased to announce an overall decrease in the number of asylumseekers who have come into our centres throughout the country this year. In 2010 we received a total of 185 900 applications for asylum. In 2011, this figure dropped to 87 020, and last year the figure reduced further to 85 058.
I must emphasise that we are not making it more difficult to apply for asylum in South Africa, as some are now suggesting. In fact, we are seeing a significant increase in the number of refugee applications being processed in our centres where the asylumseeker numbers have reduced. This is a very positive sign and we believe that the absence of huge throngs actually creates a conducive environment and atmosphere for those persons who are genuinely in need of humanitarian assistance.
All indications are that this year, touch wood, barring the outbreak of war or any other catastrophic occurrence on the continent and our region, we are set to see further reductions in the number of asylumseekers. Thus, when we stood here in this chamber and spoke about South Africa being the world's largest recipient of asylum seekers, we are now reporting to the House that the situation in South Africa is rapidly normalising.
These developments should remind us all, once again, that South Africa is not an island; that our fortunes as a country are inextricably linked with the fortunes of our brethren on the continent. [Applause.] As has been said by former Presidents Nelson Mandela and Thabo Mbeki, as well as President Jacob Zuma, on so many occasions, South Africans cannot dream of peace, prosperity and a better life without dreaming that same dream for the rest of Africa. [Applause.]
We therefore welcome the recommendation by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, UNHCR, to end the refugee status of certain exiled Angolans in 2011. This is good news for us and the continent. The UNHCR has noted that circumstances in Angola have changed significantly to the extent that it is no longer a refugee-producing country. Angola is a country that has decisively put its past behind it and is notching up some very serious and impressive developmental statistics. It is one of the fastest growing economies on the continent. Its GDP growth is projected to be in the region of 7%. It is a country attracting a good deal of foreign investment. The human development index in regard to health, education and income shows that Angola has, since 2006, performed above the regional average and it is a rapidly growing tourist destination.
Last week, Cabinet declared its support for the proposal made by the UNHCR that all refugees who sought refuge in South Africa on the basis of the Angolan civil war will be capable of initiating durable solutions by relinquishing their status as refugees.
Refugee status is not meant to be a permanent situation. This is why all of the international instruments governing refugee matters refer to cessation in circumstances where significant changes have occurred which allow people who previously fled under threat of persecution to return to their home countries. I do not need to remind the House and hon members here that the same situation pertained to South Africa with the unbanning of the ANC. Many hundreds of people who were in exile returned home to their country of birth to help rebuild our beloved country.
Angolan refugees who have similar dreams of a homeland that will forever be a place of peace and prosperity are now urged to return to their motherland and help in the effort to reconstruct that country into a regional and continental place of pride, where people abide by the rule of law and where there is peace and prosperity for all. The UNHCR, the Angolan government and the South African government we have in principle agreed to assist those who are still here and who wish to voluntarily return to Angola.
For those who wish to stay on in South Africa, we will be introducing an option to apply for temporary or permanent residence visas upon obtaining their Angolan passports from their embassy in South Africa. We shall, within the next few days, be announcing the location of helpdesks and deadlines within which such applications may be made during this window of opportunity. We therefore urge those who wish to take advantage of this option to obtain their Angolan passports as soon as possible.
Hon members will be aware that, in terms of the Refugees Act, the Standing Committee on Refugee Affairs has the power to revoke anyone's refugee status at any time. In declaring its support for the UNHCR's recommendation with regard to Angolan refugees, the South African government has not only signalled its support for an end to the refugee-producing status of Angola, but we have given those affected persons a window of opportunity for durable solutions to their status. The last option available to such refugees, whose status may be the subject of review by the SCRA, will be to apply to the standing committee for an exemption from cessation. This category of persons will then, if granted the exemption, remain refugees in this country until the SCRA determines otherwise.
I am now coming to the Film and Publication Board items. We were in Bredasdorp recently, where I was able, amongst other things, to personally deliver the ID of a brother to the hon Leonard Max, amongst other persons. We wanted to thank him personally for the wonderful letter that he sent to the Minister, but he is not here, unfortunately. I hope people will convey that to him. May I suggest, hon De Freitas, that you obtain a copy of this so that next year when you deliver your speech, we will be able to take what you said this year, as we have done this year with the speech that you delivered last year. [Applause.]
As I have mentioned, we were in Bredasdorp recently with the FPB on an outreach programme and we were very privileged to meet Chrisna Junios. Chrisna was generous enough to share her story with us and has given me permission to share it with the hon members here today. The reason we want to speak about her experience is because it says so much about the worth of the FPB and the work that it does.
A few years ago, Chrisna's marriage was on the rocks and she was emotionally in a very bad place. Desperately, she turned to social media and befriended a person on-line. They began communicating and eventually built a friendship. Unfortunately, the marriage problems got worse and she suffered what is commonly called a nervous breakdown. She was admitted to hospital. Upon discharge she accepted a lift home from her cyber friend, with whom she had continued communicating throughout the process. Sad to say, she never arrived home. She was kidnapped. She had to endure torture and degradation at the hands of her kidnappers. She had to endure forced feeding of drugs. She suffered sexual assault numerous times.
She was finally rescued after 13 months in captivity. No one can imagine the strength that it took to recover from this horrible experience. Chrisna is with us today as a guest of the department. She is joined by her new husband, Mr Neno Junios. They are up in the gallery. Please stand ... [Applause.] You are both very welcome here today.
Chrisna's experience is a vivid reminder to all of us that whilst the cyber world has revolutionised our lives, we should never imagine it is without peril to ourselves and our children.
The work done by the FPB must be supported across party lines, and we should not fall for the mistaken notion, as some have done, that this body is no different from the censorship board of the old apartheid era. It is a vital institution that enhances our security capabilities and very literally continues to save lives every day. [Applause.]
I want to speak very briefly about the achievements of the legal department, but the hon De Freitas has pre-empted me. I want to say, yes, we are a very heavily litigated department. We are probably the second only to the SAPS in this regard. We have no control, quite frankly, over those people who decide to institute litigation against us. It is their constitutional right to do so, and it is for us to defend the interest of the department and the laws passed by this very House. We will defend, though, only those cases that we think are defensible. Where we think we are wrong, we have made the effort to reach out and correct our mistakes. [Applause.] We do not defend unnecessarily.
I may say that we do fairly well with regard to the outcome. I have in my possession the statistics with regard to court applications that we have been party to this year. Out of 29 applications, we won 23. All these related to immigration, labour as well as ID and passport disputes. This is a success rate of 79%. [Applause.] Thank goodness that the DA does not run Home Affairs ... [Applause.] ... because if they did ... [Interjections.] ... this is the pose that we would have had all the time: We surrender! We would put our hands high up above our heads and constantly say, We surrender!
This is what happens when you pray before the temple of popularity as opposed to leadership. Thank you very much. [Time expired.] [Applause.]