The ANC government introduced special permits for Zimbabwean asylum seekers at the height of Robert Mugabe's brutal regime in 2008.New research has indicated that the biggest challenge in documenting immigrants is procedure, which increasingly excludes people who are considered ‘not useful’ to the South African economy.
“The people we interviewed emphasised that ZEP holders have built their lives in South Africa. Many have nothing to go back to in Zimbabwe. Many have started families here, sometimes with South Africans. Children of ZEP holders will be harshly affected as their visas depend on their parents’ permits,” reads the report.
According to the report, the ZEP was created for those escaping political and economical difficulties in Zimbabwe. However, these conditions have not come to an end, yet the government is planning to cancel it. "People are still flocking into South Africa, if anything - they should be making more people apply for these permits," said one of the ZEP holders.The research further reveals that apart from the nature of the restrictions being discriminatory, the actual process of applying for permits and alternate visas has become increasingly costly and requires time-bound documentation, which are difficult to coordinate and expensive.