Refugees in Durban say evictions have left them destitute

A leader of a group of about 450 refugees who are living on a pavement outside a Durban Home Affairs office say they have nowhere else to go. Princess Adjei says many of them have been evicted by their landlords, or they have lost their jobs. The group has been living on the pavement for more than two months after they protested outside the Durban Central Police Station. This was in the run-up to the 30 June protests against undocumented foreign nationals. The municipality has provided portable toilets. Volunteers are providing other essentials like food, water and blankets. However, Adjei says the children have not been able to go to school. “Most of the kids are not going to school because they are being harassed in the schools by their fellow students. It’s really affecting the kids. So, most of them just don’t want to be in the school because of the harassment. Number two, there are other schools who say they don’t want foreign nationals there because they don’t want problems. So, most of the kids are here that are not going to school.” Durban refugees say evictions left them with nowhere to go Meanwhile, humanitarian organisation Gift of the Givers says it has organised a bus to take Malawian nationals living on the pavement to a temporary repatriation centre in Musina, Limpopo.