3 Oct 2009

SOUTH AFRICA/ ZIMBABWEAN REFUGEES

Thousands of Zimbabweans cross the border into South Africa every month in search of work and security. Their journey into to the cities often takes many weeks and when they finally arrive, they are not guaranteed work. UNDP

Posted at: October 3, 2009 12:01 am

Duration: 03:27

Available in: SD

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Full script

STORY: SOUTH AFRICA / MIGRANT WORKERS
TRT: 3.27
SOURCE: UNDP
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGES: ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: RECENT, MUSINA & JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA / NEW YORK CITY

SHOTLIST:

RECENT, MUSINA, SOUTH AFRICA

1. Various shots, highway traffic
2. Various shots, migrants receiving paperwork at the border
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Migrant worker:
"I'm happy.  I'm very, very happy.  I can manage to get job and work all over South Africa country." 
4. Various shots, immigration documentation process
5. Various shots, food line
6. Various shots, migrants around a fire

RECENT, JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA

7. Various shots, downtown Johannesburg

RECENT, NEW YORK CITY

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Jeni Klugman, Director of the Human Development Report Office, UNDP:
"You've got situations where it's economic duress, which has driven the movement, and people are not formally entitled to refugee status. Clearly, they have to get by on their own, and often times they're moving to other developing countries, which already have overburdened services."

RECENT, JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA

9. Various shots, food and people eating on the street
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Chaliso, Zimbabwean migrant:
"I was expecting great job and to earn about 1.8 to 2,000 a month, but no right now. Since I came here in June, I only worked for 60 rand a day, only one day.  Now it's two months."
11. Various shots, lounge area and food services at Zimbabwean migrant shelter
12. Med shot, people socializing
13. SOUNDBITE (English) Sharon Chigwada, Assistant Clinic Mangaer, MSF:
"Some of them, they cannot even afford a plate of meal, and when they go to the hospitals, they are asked to pay a lot of money, which they cannot afford."
14. Various shots, Zimbabwean migrant family
15. SOUNDBITE (English) Loveness Sachumba, Zimbabwean migrant:
"We fear xenophobia, one. And we don't have enough money to pay for the rents. Here we are safe."
16. Various shots, Sachumba family

STORYLINE:
 
Allowing for migration – both within and between countries – has the potential to increase people's freedom and improve the lives of millions around the world, according to the 2009 Human Development Report to be launched on Monday (5 October).

But the extent to which people are able to gain from moving depends greatly on the conditions under which they move.

With thousands of migrants crossing the border into South Africa from Zimbabwe every month, South African communities and governments continue to deal with issues surrounding migration.

In the town of Musina just across the border from Zimbabwe, migrants wait in line to register and then start the long journey to Johannesburg and Pretoria.

SOUNDBITE (English) Migrant Worker:
"I'm happy.  I'm very, very happy.  I can manage to get job and work all over South Africa country."

Traveling by bus to both cities will only take six to eight hours, but many here have to travel for shorter distances because that is all they can afford.

They then work in various small towns along the way until finally making it to the large cities where they hope to find more permanent work. But this is rarely the case as South Africa's already stretched economy does not provide for the opportunities that migrants hope for.

Jeni Klugman, lead author of the Human Development Report says that migrants moving from developing countries to other developing countries can cause hardship to both the communities in the host country and the migrants themselves.

SOUNDBITE (English) Jeni Klugman, Director of the Human Development Report Office, UNDP:
"You've got situations where it's economic duress, which has driven the movement, and people are not formally entitled to refugee status.  Clearly, they have to get by on their own, and often times they're moving to other developing countries, which already have overburdened services."

SOUNDBITE (English) Chaliso, Zimbabwean Migrant:
"I was expecting great job and to earn about 1.8 to 2,000 a month, but no right now. Since I came here in June, I only worked for 60 rand a day, only one day.  Now it's two months."

Johannesburg's Central Methodist Church is home to hundreds of Zimbabwean refugees that cannot find shelter and afford rents.

SOUNDBITE (English) Sharon Chigwada, Assistant Clinic Manager, MSF:
"Some of them, they cannot even afford a plate of meal, and when they go to the hospitals, they are asked to pay a lot of money, which they cannot afford."

Loveness Sachumba says her family is also staying at the shelter for security reasons.

SOUNDBITE (English) Loveness Sachumba, Zimbabwean migrant:
"We fear xenophobia, one. And we don't have enough money to pay for the rents.  Here we are safe."

Nearly one billion, or one out of seven of the world's people are migrants. The UNDP report 'Overcoming Barriers: Human mobility and development' says that migration can enhance human development for the people who move, for destination communities and for those who remain at home.

But at the same time financial outlays can be relatively high, and movement inevitably involves uncertainty and separation from families.

The poor are often constrained by a lack of resources, information and barriers in their new host communities and countries. For too many people movement reflects the repercussions of conflict, natural disaster or severe economic hardship. Some women end up in trafficking networks, lose significant freedoms and suffer physical danger.

This is the latest publication in a series of global Human Development Reports which aim to frame debates on some of the most pressing challenges facing humanity, from climate change to human rights. It is an independent report commissioned by the UNDP.

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