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Advocacy in the Time of Xenophobia: Exploring Opportunities for Change in South African Migration Policy and Practice

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Advocacy in the Time of Xenophobia: Exploring Opportunities for Change in South African Migration Policy and Practice Advocacy in the Time of Xenophobia: Exploring Opportunities for Change in South African Migration Policy and Practice by Sarah A. Pugh A Thesis presented to The University of Guelph In partial fulfilment of requirements for the degree of Doctorate in Political Science and International Development Studies Guelph, Ontario, Canada © Sarah A. Pugh, June, 2014 ABSTRACT ADVOCACY IN THE TIME OF XENOPHOBIA: EXPLORING OPPORTUNITIES FOR CHANGE IN SOUTH AFRICAN MIGRATION POLICY AND PRACTICE Sarah A. Pugh Advisor: University of Guelph, 2014 Professor Carol Dauda In May 2008, violence against foreign nationals erupted in communities across South Africa. Dozens lost their lives, hundreds were injured, and thousands were displaced in a crisis that highlighted migration as one of the most complicated, volatile issues currently facing the young democracy. In the aftermath of the crisis, important questions have been raised regarding the complex causes of the violence and the widespread anti-foreigner attitudes that continue to find regular expression in the country. This dissertation explores the social and political space in which challenges to this status quo are being advanced. Drawing on a series of qualitative, semi- structured key informant interviews with civil society actors and policy makers, along with six months of participant observation at a migration-focused non-governmental organisation in Cape Town, this research interrogates both the opportunities and limitations for advancing a progressive vision of migration in South Africa. This is understood as a vision which promotes the upholding and expansion of rights for migrants, refugees and asylum seekers, the progressive dismantling of xenophobic social attitudes, and the reconceptualisation of migration as a potential tool for development. While important advances have been made in the migration arena since 1994, migration management remains rooted in a control and security-oriented approach, and migration continues to be perceived primarily as a threat and a burden. Negative social constructions of migrants combine with widespread perceptions of a de facto hierarchy of rights that places citizens’ rights above those of foreign nationals, making it difficult for policy-makers and civil society actors to advance a progressive migration agenda. This is compounded by a rapidly shifting and contentious migration policy environment, in which the policies on paper often bear little resemblance to their implementation in practice. In this context, the efforts and interventions of civil society actors working in this arena, while important and necessary, are limited in their effectiveness. These actors also face ongoing and deep-seated internal challenges that delimit their capacity to effect change. For South Africa to begin to intentionally foster and harness migration’s developmental potentials will require strong political leadership, vision and commitment, along with a fundamental reconceptualisation of migration. Given current migration practices and discourse, such a shift seems unlikely for the foreseeable future. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I owe a debt of gratitude to more people than I can possibly mention in these acknowledgements. First and foremost, I would like to thank my advisor, Dr. Carol Dauda, for her consistent support, encouragement and insights throughout this project. Dr. Sally Humphries and Dr. Craig Johnson, as committee members, have also been wonderfully supportive from start to finish, as have faculty and staff in the Department of Political Science, and the International Development Studies programme. I would especially like to thank the inimitable duo of Renée Tavascia and Gerie McCauley, who have performed the miracle of making all administrative chores both easy and endlessly entertaining. I am indebted as well to Ms. Miranda Madikane and Mr. Sergio Carciotto at the Scalabrini Centre of Cape Town, for welcoming me into the Centre and for their ongoing support of this research. I would like to gratefully acknowledge the many individuals who generously took time from their busy schedules to respond to my requests for meetings or interviews. Although civil society actors, civil servants and politicians are notoriously busy people, I was consistently met with graciousness and cooperation in the pursuit of this research. In particular, I need to thank Dr. Mario Oriani-Ambrosini, whose introductions across the political spectrum led to a number of especially helpful and interesting interviews and meetings in the policy arena. On a more personal level, I would like to express my appreciation for the remarkable decision of my various friends and family members not to disown me during this Ph.D. process. They have tolerated my absences, my preoccupations, my ramblings, and my occasional frustrations. More than that, they have supported me whole-heartedly at every turn. To my parents, Douglas and Susan, thank you for your unfailing trust and love through all the unexpected twists and turns. Karen and Kathy, you have been the most wonderful cheerleaders. Dee, Derek, Erin, Lynda, Rachelle, Yolande, Sabine, and Zukisani – thank you to each of you for supporting me through this process, each in your own invaluable and unique way. And Stephen, your patience, humour and insights have propelled me forward with love and with laughter. Thank you. Finally, and importantly, I would like to gratefully acknowledge the generous financial support of this research by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. It is difficult to imagine how this project would otherwise have been possible. v Table of Contents List of Abbreviations and Acronyms .......................................................................................................... viii Chapter One: Introduction ............................................................................................................................ 1 Chapter Two: Methodology ........................................................................................................................ 10 Ethnography & Participant Observation: Methodological Rewards and Limitations ............................. 11 Semi-structured and Key Informant Interviews: Methodological Rewards and Limitations ................. 16 Chapter Three: Conceptual Considerations: Migration and Development ................................................ 21 Conclusion: .............................................................................................................................................. 40 Chapter Four: Migration and Development in the South African Context ................................................. 42 Unskilled Migration and Development in South Africa .......................................................................... 43 Domestic Migration Dynamics ................................................................................................................ 46 Undocumented Migration and Development ........................................................................................ 48 Skilled Migration and Development Debates in South Africa ................................................................ 51 Regional Considerations for Migration and Development ..................................................................... 57 Conclusion: .............................................................................................................................................. 60 Chapter Five: Conceptual Considerations: The Elusive Nature of “Civil Society” ....................................... 62 An Overview of Civil Society in South Africa ........................................................................................... 71 Conclusion: .............................................................................................................................................. 83 Chapter Six: Legitimacy, Xenophobia, and the Social Construction of Migrants ........................................ 85 Migration and the Transition to Democracy ........................................................................................... 86 Liberalism and the Social Legitimacy of Migrants’ Rights ....................................................................... 94 Xenophobia, Belonging, and Non-State Sites of Power ........................................................................ 101 Political Priority and the Social Construction of Migration .................................................................. 111 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................. 123 Chapter Seven: Making the Law: Migration Policy Development Since 1994 .......................................... 125 Migration Policy in Historical Context .................................................................................................. 126 The Refugees Act of 1998 ..................................................................................................................... 129 The Immigration Act of 2002 ................................................................................................................ 139 Conclusion: ............................................................................................................................................ 153 Chapter Eight: Falling Through the Cracks: Implementation Struggles in Contemporary Migration Management ............................................................................................................................................
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