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MIGRANTS IN COUNTRIES IN CRISIS SOUTH AFRICA CASE STUDY The Double Crisis – Mass Migration From Zimbabwe And Xenophobic Violence in South Africa Jonathan Crush, Godfrey Tawodzera, Abel Chikanda, Sujata Ramachandran & Daniel Tevera Project funded by the European Union Project implemented by ICMPD In partnership with IMI Southern African Migration Programme International Migration Institute IMI Migrants in Countries in Crisis (MICIC) South Africa Case Study: The Double Crisis – Mass Migration From Zimbabwe And Xenophobic Violence in South Africa Jonathan Crush, Godfrey Tawodzera, Abel Chikanda, Sujata Ramachandran & Daniel Tevera Prepared on behalf of the International Centre for Migration Policy Development, Vienna - Austria Commissioned and funded by the European Union, Brussels – Belgium International Centre for Migration Policy Development • 2017 i Authors Jonathan Crush is the CIGI Chair in Global Migration and Development at the Balsillie School of International Affairs, Waterloo, and Director of the Southern African Migration Programme (SAMP). Godfrey Tawodzera is Senior Lecturer in the Department of Geography and Environmental Science, University of Limpopo, Polokwane, South Africa. Abel Chikanda is Assistant Professor of Geography and African and African-American Studies, University of Kansas. Sujata Ramachandran is a Senior Researcher with the Southern African Migration Programme (SAMP). Daniel Tevera is Professor in the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, University of Western Cape, Cape Town, South Africa. ii Acknowledgements The authors gratefully acknowledge the review and input provided by colleagues at the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD), the International Migration Institute (IMI) and the European Commission (EC). International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) Gonzagagasse 1 A-1010 Vienna Austria www.icmpd.org International Centre for Migration Policy Development & Southern African Migration Programme All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission of the copyright owners. This publication has been produced with the assistance of the European Union. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of ICMPD, SAMP, IMI or the University of Oxford, nor can they in any way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union. iii Table of Contents Authors ................................................................................................................................................ ii Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................. iii List of Figures .......................................................................................................................................... vi List of Tables .......................................................................................................................................... vii List of Acronyms .................................................................................................................................... viii Executive Summary ................................................................................................................................. ix 1. Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 1 2. Research Methodology .................................................................................................................... 6 3. The Crisis in Zimbabwe .................................................................................................................... 7 3.1. Political Persecution, Economic Collapse ........................................................................... 7 3.2. Migrating Out of Crisis ....................................................................................................... 10 3.3. South African Policy Responses to Crisis Migration ......................................................... 17 4. The Crisis of Xenophobia in South Africa....................................................................................... 21 4.1. Xenophobic Violence in 2008 ........................................................................................... 21 4.2. Xenophobic Violence in the Informal Economy ................................................................ 23 4.3. Xenophobic Violence in 2015 ........................................................................................... 25 4.4. Explanations for Xenophobic Violence ............................................................................. 26 5. Zimbabweans in the South African Informal Economy .................................................................. 28 5.1. Migration Profile ................................................................................................................ 28 5.2. Drivers of Migration to South Africa .................................................................................. 29 5.3. Business Ownership and Expansion ................................................................................ 34 5.4. Remitting to Zimbabwe ..................................................................................................... 37 6. Zimbabweans and the Crisis of Extreme Xenophobia ................................................................... 41 6.1. Experiencing May 2008..................................................................................................... 41 6.2. Narratives of Xenophobic Violence ................................................................................... 42 6.3. Zimbabwean Migrant Reactions to Xenophobic Violence ................................................ 46 7. Stakeholder Responses to Xenophobic Violence .......................................................................... 49 7.1. Migrant Perceptions of Government (In)action ................................................................. 49 7.2. Response of Zimbabwean Government ........................................................................... 50 7.3. Response of South African Government .......................................................................... 51 7.3.1. Responses to May 2008 .................................................................................................... 51 7.3.2. Responses to 2015 Attacks ............................................................................................... 53 7.3.3. Operation Fiela .................................................................................................................. 56 7.4. Responses of South African Police to Xenophobia .......................................................... 61 7.5. Responses of Other South African Stakeholders ............................................................. 64 7.5.1. NGO Views Concerning Xenophobic Violence ................................................................. 64 7.5.2. South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) ........................................................ 66 7.5.3. Consortium for Refugees and Migrants in South Africa (CoRMSA) ................................. 67 7.5.4. Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) – South Africa ............................................................. 67 7.5.5. People’s Coalition Against Xenophobia (PCAX) ............................................................... 68 7.5.6. Other South African CSOs ................................................................................................ 68 7.6. Responses of International Stakeholders ......................................................................... 70 7.6.1. UNHCR .............................................................................................................................. 70 7.6.2. International Organization for Migration (IOM) – South Africa .......................................... 70 7.6.3. International Labour Organization (ILO) ............................................................................ 72 iv 7.6.4. Amnesty International – South Africa ................................................................................ 72 7.6.5. European Union................................................................................................................. 72 7.6.6. African Union ..................................................................................................................... 72 8. Conclusions and Recommendations .............................................................................................. 74 9. Reference List ................................................................................................................................ 76 10. Annexes .......................................................................................................................................... 89 Annex A: Interviews with Zimbabwean Migrants ............................................................................ 89 Annex B: Key Informant Interviews ................................................................................................ 91 v List of Figures Figure