South Africa: Court Thwarts Minister Motsoaledi's Renewed Bid to Terminate Zimbabwean Exemption Permits

GovernmentZA / Flickr (CC BY-ND 2.0)
Minister Aaron Motsoaledi in 2020.
16 October 2023
Daily Maverick (Johannesburg)
By Georgina Crouth

A Full Bench of the Pretoria Division of the High Court has refused to hear the Home Affairs ministry's application for leave to appeal against a ruling overturning Motsoaledi's 'executive' decision to terminate the programme.

Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi's crusade against the Zimbabwean Exemption Permit (ZEP) programme has hit a snag.

A Full Bench of the Pretoria Division of the High Court has refused to hear his ministry's application for leave to appeal against an earlier ruling overturning his "executive" decision to terminate the programme, which means that ZEP holders retain the right to live and work in South Africa, at least for the next 12 months.

Essentially, the high court said the minister must return to the drawing board and carry out proper consultation.

While that process is under way, ZEP holders are protected for a year.

The matter stems from the Pretoria High Court's ruling on 28 June, in which a Full Bench declared the termination of the ZEP programme to be unlawful, unconstitutional and invalid, and directed the minister to reconsider the issue "following a fair process" that complies with the relevant laws.

Motsoaledi's department has repeatedly attempted to terminate, then extend, the ZEP programme.

On 2 September 2022, when Motsoaledi announced his department would terminate the ZEP programme for good and refuse any further exemptions, the Helen Suzman Foundation and the Consortium for Refugees and Migrants in South Africa...

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