No Other Choice! Inside the Desperate Move from Durban to Lindela
DURBAN — Home Affairs has begun moving asylum seekers and refugees from outside its Che Guevara Road offices to Lindela Repatriation Centre in Gauteng, while their longer term destination remains unresolved. The department said 278 people were scheduled for relocation following consultations with representatives of the affected communities.
The operation began at 5am on Tuesday under the direction of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Migration. According to Home Affairs, the group was offered two options: return to their areas of residence or relocate to Lindela in Krugersdorp. The department said agreement on Lindela followed a series of engagements.
Law enforcement officers escorted the transfer, while Che Guevara Road was cleared to ensure compliance with municipal bylaws and maintain public order. Gift of the Givers secured food parcels to support those being relocated.
Although the destination is a repatriation centre, the announced operation is a relocation within South Africa. Home Affairs has not announced completed deportations or confirmed that another country has agreed to receive the group.
Instead, the department said government would continue discussions with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees about possible resettlement abroad. Its statement provides neither a confirmed destination nor a timetable for that process.
The move follows sporadic violence in the area, which government condemned earlier this month. Justice and Constitutional Development Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi reiterated that immigration management and related law enforcement are responsibilities of the state.
KwaZulu-Natal Premier Thamsanqa Ntuli also called for immigration and community safety matters to be handled through appropriate legal and administrative processes, while affirming the province’s commitment to social cohesion and the rule of law.
The relocation addresses the group’s presence outside the Durban offices, but the next stage remains open. Moving to Lindela does not, on the information announced, settle whether those affected will remain in South Africa or eventually be accepted for resettlement elsewhere.
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