As the protest against illegal immigrants draws closer, a mother of three says she is living in fear after she was allegedly detained at the Diepsloot Police Station for failing to produce documentation. 

She further claims she was forced to pay R1 500 to secure her release. 

The 27-year-old woman, who declined to be named, was born in South Africa to a Mozambican mother. She does not know her father’s nationality. 

The woman, who works part-time as a domestic worker, claims she has been trying to obtain an identity document and have her citizenship status resolved since she was at school, but to no avail. 

Detained 

Earlier this month, not having her documentation reportedly caught up with her. 

“I went to a shop near my home with my three-year-old daughter to buy groceries. My daughter was playing with my friend’s children and I was standing in line to pay for some items. Suddenly, I was approached by police officers and officials from the Department of Home Affairs and asked to produce my documents,” she explains. 

“They were going around asking all the foreigners for their documentation. It was chaos. I told them I did not have any and tried to explain my situation, but they put me and other men and women into the back of a police van and took us to the Diepsloot Police Station,” she adds.  
 
Her friend took her daughter home and alerted her sister to what had happened so she could fetch her other two children from school. 

The woman claims that when she arrived at the police station, she was held in a holding cell with other women.  

Deportation 

“We were told that we were going to be deported to our countries. I was scared because I have never left South Africa. I was born here and I do not know anyone from Mozambique. I was afraid, thinking what would become of me and my children if I were taken away.” 

She says she was allowed one phone call. 

“I contacted my sister and told her everything. After a day and a half of uncertainty, I was released because my family had paid R1 500 for my release. I don’t know if the money was for bail, because I did not appear before a court, or if it was a fine. The police just took the money and released me,” she claims. 

She adds that life has been a struggle. 

“My mother is an alcoholic. I don’t know who my father is. I have never had any form of identification except for the Road to Health book that recorded my clinic visits. I wrote matric using a supporting letter from the Department of Education. I have been trying for years to sort my documentation out, but I always hit stumbling blocks,” she explains. 

The woman adds that the incident has left her fearful. 

“I am still dealing with the trauma of being detained and with the protest happening tomorrow, I am concerned about my safety.”  

Documentation battle 

Shera Deavall first met the woman through an outreach programme called Khensani’s Collection and has been trying to assist her. 

“I have personally gone on an extensive journey to try to assist the woman and her two sisters with their documentation over the years. We have made numerous visits to the Department of Home Affairs, consulted public sector lawyers and private lawyers, and tried many other avenues, but we have never been successful.” 
 
Deavall says the woman was born in South Africa. 
 
“She knows no other country and yet she has been treated as a foreigner her whole life simply because she does not have an identity document. Her traumatic experience of being taken away from her home and separated from her children has left them fearful.” 

Stateless 

Thulani Mavuso, the spokesperson for the Department of Home Affairs, says there are many people in similar situations. 

“If both your parents are foreigners, being born in South Africa does not automatically make you a citizen. You are only a citizen if one of your parents is South African. In the woman’s case, she does not know who her father is, so her best option would be to apply for citizenship through the minister because she is stateless,” he explains. 

Mavuso adds that if a person has been arrested because they are either in the country illegally or unable to produce documentation, they should provide police or immigration officials with as much information as possible about their identity. 

Parental negligence 

“We do have people whose births were never registered because of the negligence of their parents and they find themselves in this situation. You cannot simply begin the deportation process or require a person to pay a fine. The matter first needs to be investigated,” he explains.  

Mavuso says officials are not permitted to accept any payment in exchange for a person’s release.  

“The correct procedure is to issue the person with a notice instructing them to appear before an immigration officer on a specified date so that the matter can be investigated further.” 

Report corruption 

Colonel Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi, the spokesperson for the Gauteng SAPS, advises the woman to report the matter to the station commander. 

“All allegations of fraud involving police members should be reported immediately to enable disciplinary action and an investigation,” she says. 

Suspected corruption can be reported to the National Anti-Corruption Hotline on 0800 701 701, the SAPS Service Complaints Centre on 0800 333 177, or the Gauteng Service Complaints Standby on 082 442 2000. 

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