Hon Chairperson, hon Ministers and Deputy Ministers present, the Director-General of Home Affairs, officials and guests in the gallery, the birth of our nation in 1994 demonstrated the strength of centripetal and centrifugal forces in shaping the polity and developmental path of the nation.
While some, for fear of the unknown, hastily rushed out to unknown lands, abandoning the land that had imparted to them a bogus status of "baas" and "miesies" and catapulted them to an opulence those in their motherland can only dream of, torrents of others, in the hope of an imminent better life for all, rained into our beautiful country. Those who knew and trusted the ANC knew that a true democracy was on its way and those who understood our value of ubuntu knew that no home would be better than the one the ANC of South Africa was building. [Applause.]
In describing the humane spirit of South Africans, our father, O R Tambo, said to the United Nations in 1955:
That statement, which declares South Africa belongs to all who live in it, is a drastic concession on the part of the African people, but is a demonstration of the willingness of the African people to live in South Africa with everybody who wants to live there on the basis of absolute equality - no racism, no racial discrimination, no superior race, no inferior race. On that basis South Africa belongs to all who live in it.
[Applause.] You need to go through history to understand how this declaration has been abused by some because they prefer, and continue to prefer, only one part of the deal. Ubaba uTambo made it clear that the declaration is not unconditional, but is based on absolute equality.
The question is not whether people come from South Africa, or they come through our borders; it is why people come through our borders. Unfortunately, reality shows that not all who come through our borders have honourable intentions and bona fide motives.
Some come into our country to help us build our developmental state. To those we say: "This is our home - come, let us build a nation steeped in unity and plurality, and join us on our journey toward a national democratic society."
However, some, like a thief in the night, come with the purpose of harming our beautiful nation and country. To those we say: "The time has come to turn the tide. We never had criminals in mind when building constitutional supremacy. This land of our forefathers, as SA Native National Congress President Makgatho said, shall never become a hideout for criminals under our watch." Statistics demonstrate that more than 95% of those claiming asylum in South Africa are not genuine asylum seekers.
Kepha ngabantu nje abazozifunela amathuba emisebenzi. Kuyaziwa-ke ukuthi laba bahlobo bethu bavunyelwe ukuthi baziphilise ngenkathi besalinde izimpendulo zezicelo zabo. Abanye-ke baye bagcine sebezibonela amathuba okuthi, ukuze bamukeleke eNingizimu Afrika, bashade nabantu baseNingizimu Afrika; okuyimishado engekho emthethweni. Abanye baze bazifunele nezitifiketi zokuzalwa ezingekho emthethweni. Abanye baze babe nezingane nabantu baseNingizimu Afrika. (Translation of isiZulu paragraph follows.)
[They just came here to seek job opportunities. It is a known fact that they are allowed to find some means to earn a living while job hunting. Some end up getting married to South African citizens in order to obtain South African citizenship and these marriages are not even legal. Some fraudulently acquire fake birth certificates. Others even have children with South Africans.]
The above-mentioned challenges call for new measures. South Africa must take steps to be able to refuse asylum to asylum seekers who have transited through one or more safe countries. The United Nations convention on asylum seekers provides for the first safe country rule, which states that an asylum seeker should seek refuge in the first safe country that she or he reaches. In this regard, South Africa should exercise its right to refuse to grant refugee status to asylum seekers who have travelled through safe countries.
Njengoba sazi ukuthi abanye basuka emazweni akude, badlule wonke amanye amazwe aphephile, beze la eNingizimu Afrika ukuzocasha bathi basabela izimpilo zabo. Abanye sibabona ngezinsuku zamaholide sebehamba beyovakashela izihlobo zabo. Lokhu kusishiya nombuzo othi: Umuntu uvakasha kanjani uma ecashile, ebalekela ukubulawa ezweni lakhe? (Translation of isiZulu paragraph follows.)
[We all know that some come from countries that are far away, having passed through all the other safe countries to come to South Africa claiming to fear for their lives. Some even visit their families during holidays and this makes us wonder how they could do that if they were genuine asylum seekers.]
It is crucial that systems be put in place to effectively and efficiently manage economic migrants. We should all not forget that there are strong historical flows of labour between certain Southern African countries and South Africa. Movement of people in and out of the country is inalienable to trade operations and economic development.
Immigration and border management continue to be critical to balancing security and development interests. The border management agency should thus be strengthened and the department should play a crucial role in its strategies and operations to ensure that only the appropriately documented find their way into the country.
The department should also strengthen its management of asylum seekers. There should be a strict adherence to international conventions and protocols.
The 53rd ANC National Conference in December 2012 deliberated on the state of Home Affairs as a key function of the state. The conference raised its concerns over the presence of undocumented migrants in the Republic, which poses both an economic and a security threat to the country.
It deliberated on the challenges relating to legislation regulating access to citizenship by foreign nationals. It also acknowledged the initiative of the department in embarking on modernisation and the development of a single national identity system which is based on biometrics. This will also be used in the Integrated Justice System to fight crime more effectively.
The conference clearly articulated the need to reconsider policy relating to centres for asylum seekers during consideration of their status.
Concurrently, the ANC recognised the perceptions that arise during this process and called for awareness programmes to combat xenophobia and educate society against narrow nationalism.
Home Affairs plays a decisive role as the backbone of the developmental state, and is central to enabling security and service provision. It plays a crucial role in enabling all South Africans to proudly claim their citizenship, their identity and their dignity.
A developmental state is unable to meet its essential goals without a detailed and secure identification system that incorporates both citizens and noncitizens who live, work or study within its borders. The identification system is crucial to a range of social, economic and cultural activities, and ensures that the state is empowered to organise itself, plan for the future and protect its citizens.
One of the pillars of the National Development Plan is the building of a capable developmental state that can play a decisive role both in development and in the reduction of poverty. It is therefore encouraging that the department has embarked on a large-scale modernisation programme that will enable the state to provide services effectively and securely. The same systems will produce reliable statistics for planning purposes.
The integrity of the national population register is at the heart of all this, ensuring that all people in South Africa feel safe and are safe. [Time expired.] The ANC supports the Budget. I thank you. [Applause.]