But Lawyers for Human Rights disagrees with the court’s reasoning and is appealing  By Ohene Yaw Ampofo-Anti Eight Somali nationals, who currently live in South Africa, are seeking asylum here. But their applications for asylum were turned down by Home Affairs officials. They appealed to the Refugee Appeal Board (RAB), which also turned them down. Represented by Lawyers for Human Rights, the eight...

Asylum delayed is not (necessarily) asylum denied By Ohene Yaw Ampofo-Anti If a foreign national arrives in South Africa unlawfully and takes as long as 15 months to apply for asylum, are they barred from doing so? Is the person liable for deportation or should they be given an opportunity to at least apply for asylum? The Constitutional Court recently considered these...

Constitutional Court ruling overturns Home Affairs directive By Ohene Yaw Ampofo-Anti If you are an asylum seeker and your application to be a refugee is refused, you are still allowed to apply for a visa. The Constitutional Court ruled this in a unanimous judgment handed down in October. Background The case was brought by three asylum seekers whose applications for refugee status had been refused. They...