Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber has withdrawn the country’s 90-day visa exemption for 153 Palestinian passport holders.The group arrived at the OR Tambo International Airport last month from Kenya, on a chartered flight, and were stuck in the plane for several hours before they were granted entry into the country. Following investigations and recommendations by national intelligence structures and consultations conducted within the Security Cluster – which confirmed the deliberate and ongoing abuse of the 90-day visa exemption for Palestinian ordinary passport holders by Israeli actors linked to “voluntary emigration” efforts for residents of the Gaza Strip – the Department of Home Affairs has withdrawn the exemption,” said Schreiber. According to the minister, short-stay visa exemptions are commonly used by countries to incentivise tourism and short-term travel.
However, investigations into the recent arrival of two charter flights transporting Palestinian passport holders revealed systematic abuse of this exemption, “with travel designed not for the purposes of tourism or short-stays as intended, but to relocate Palestinians from Gaza.”Furthermore, the minister said instead of using ordinary commercial flights, entire airplanes were chartered not by the travellers themselves, but by intermediaries. “Most passengers were given one-way tickets to South Africa and prohibited from bringing luggage with them, while only being allowed to carry US Dollars and essentials. Upon their arrival at OR Tambo International Airport, it was further discovered that many of them lacked departure verification and accommodation in South Africa, in addition to not possessing return or onward flight tickets. Taken together, this constituted obvious abuse of the exemption by external actors for purposes other than its intended use,” explained the minister.
In addition, Schreiber said this sequence of events also amounted to abuse of the passengers themselves, as those who arranged the flights were apparently content to leave the travellers destitute upon their arrival in South Africa. Schrieber also highlighted that most of the travellers indicated that they did not want to claim asylum in South Africa, and this forced civil society organisations like the Gift of Givers, to take responsibility for their welfare. According to the minister, their investigations have revealed that the charter flights are not a once-off events, but are part of a broader, effort to relocate Palestinians to other countries.
“This includes reports that a Dubai-based broker, with offices in South Africa, recently requested bulk quotations for more charter flights to commence as soon as possible,” highlighted the minister. Following the withdrawal of the visa exemption, the department will now process any asylum applications submitted by the travellers who arrived on the two charter flights, while upholding the terms of the 90-day exemption for those not seeking asylum.
“Going forward, visa applications from bona fide Palestinian travellers will be processed accordingly to enable them to visit South Africa, while any further attempts at abuse will be rejected,” stressed Schreiber. The minister said investigations concurred with President Cyril Ramaphosa’s suspicions, that the most recent charter flight that landed at OR Tambo International Airport, might be used by Israel to flush out Palestinians out of Gaza.
“Subsequent investigations have confirmed this to be the case. Withdrawing the visa exemption is the most effective way to prevent further flights of this nature, while ensuring that bona fide travellers from Palestine are safely able to visit South Africa without being subjected to abuse. South Africa will not be complicit in any scheme to exploit or displace Palestinians from Gaza,” explained Schreiber.
