Durban refugee centre shut after violent protest halts asylum processing

The Department of Home Affairs’ Refugee Reception Centre on Che Guevara Road in Durban has halted operations after a violent demonstration against the processing of asylum applications at the facility.

As SABC News reported on 8 October, a strong police presence remained outside the centre after the protest forced it to stop taking applications.

The centre is one of the facilities where people seeking asylum in South Africa lodge and renew their claims. When it stops operating, the people who queue there cannot be processed. That is the practical effect of the shutdown, and it is the part that will be felt first by applicants who have travelled to Durban to lodge or renew a claim.

No group, movement or individual may enforce immigration law in South Africa. That authority belongs to the state, to the Department of Home Affairs and to the South African Police Service, and not to a crowd. A demonstration that halts the processing of asylum applications is not a lawful substitute for that authority, whatever the grievance behind it.

The South African Police Service has maintained a presence at the site, which is the standard response where a public facility is disrupted and order needs to be held.

For a South African reader, the centre on Che Guevara Road is not an abstraction. It is the address where asylum seekers in KwaZulu-Natal are processed, and its closure is felt by everyone in the queue, including people who have complied with the law and simply need their documents.

This is a developing story. The Enquirer has reported what is established: the centre has halted operations, a violent demonstration preceded the halt, and police remain outside the facility.

Source: SABC News, Durban Home Affairs’ Refugee Reception Centre halts operations