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Hundreds of refugees demonstrate outside UNHCR office in South Africa, demand resettlement

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Hundreds of Africans refugees seeking asylum in South Africa on Thursday, gathered outside the offices of the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), demanding that they be relocated to other countries, claiming they have been victims of xenophobia in the country.

Prior to the rally, the group has been living in the Lindela repatriation and detention center, where they have complained of the poor living conditions and xenophobic attacks by South African gangs.

Some of the refugees who are from Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo have been pushing to be repatriated to their respective countries.

One of the leaders of that asylum seekers, Lukombo Kaese, who is from Congo, told journalists:

“We are here at UNHCR to ask for protection because we are so tired of xenophobia; the lives of our kids are in danger, the future of our kids is in danger, that’s why we come to UNHCR to give us protection.

“We have the right as refugees, here’s the agreement between the government of South Africa and UNHCR, here’s the agreement and we know about it, we have the right to ask for a third country.”

“It is still our right, to come and ask for the third country, it’s written in the agreement, they know it as much as I can pretend to know it, the South African government and UNHCR,” another refugee, Johnny Moose, said.

The spokesperson at the UNHCR in the country, Buchizya Mseteka, who addressed the asylum seekers, said it was investigating their cases including the initial place where they had taken refuge at Lindela, but added that resettlement to other countries was not possible at the moment.

“But what I will tell you is this, the UNHCR has no control over which country can pick up these individuals for settlement, that’s up to the host country to decide.

“But to tell you how difficult it is, the last year 2021 only one percent of those who applied for settlement globally were accepted, only one percent, so it tells you things are tight even in host countries,” Buchizya said.

South African Home Affairs spokesperson, Siyabulela Qoza, who also addressed the refugees, said of the people outside the UNHCR, 22 have since opted for voluntary repatriation to their countries and are being assisted to do so.

Metro

Zambia’s ruling party UPND warns against personal attacks on President Hichilema

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Zambia’s ruling party, the UPND, has warned opposition politicians and critics against personal attacks on President Hakainde Hichilema as his meekness should not be mistaken for weakness.

Secretary-General of the UPND, Batuke Imenda, who gave the warning in a statement in Lusaka on Monday, urged political opponents to always engage in mature and issue-based discourse.

Zambia Monitor reports that Imenda’s warning, was directed at the leader of Zambia Must Prosper (ZMP) party, Kelvin Bwalya Fube, whose recent remarks Imenda described as “provocative” and a “feeble attempt to mislead citizens.”

“Provocative words uttered by Kelvin Bwalya against our party and President Hichilema are a clear demonstration of naivety,” Imenda said in the statement.

He further advised Bwalya to abandon personal attacks and focus on substantial political issues.

The UPND Secretary suggested that Bwalya’s attacks stemmed from a desire for relevance amid declining political fortunes, hinting at a possible alignment with former President Edgar Lungu.

“It appears KBF is hoping that Edgar Lungu might support his embattled political career by unjustly attacking President Hichilema,” he said.

Imenda defended the President’s record, highlighting that under Hichilema’s leadership, Zambia’s democratic space had expanded compared to the previous PF administration, which he accused of stifling freedoms.

He noted that while criticism was welcome, it should not devolve into baseless attacks, warning that opposition figures should not misinterpret Hichilema’s restraint as weakness.

Imenda also criticized Bwalya for overlooking the gains in transparency and justice since the change in government, claiming that past regimes were marked by resource mismanagement and corruption.

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Following backlash, Nigerian govt withdraws treason charges against minors

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The Nigerian government has officially withdrawn the treason charges it entered against some minors who participated in the #EndBadGovernance protest that spread across the country from August 1 to the 10th.

The nation was thrown into shock on Friday when the Nigeria Police presented 76 protesters at the Federal High Court in Abuja on charges bordering on treason. Among the suspects were four minors who slumped before they could be arraigned before the court.

This caused serious uproar in the country with Nigerians condemning the government and calling for the unconditional release of the kids and the dismissal of the charges against them.

The decision to withdraw the charges against the underage accused came following a directive by President Bola Tinubu who ordered the immediate withdrawal of the charges and an in-depth investigation into what led to the arrest and detention of the minors.

Tinubu had also ordered the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, (SAN) to officially take over the case file as well as review the cases following public outcry that came with the arraignment of the minors.

The charges were finally withdrawn on Tuesday at the Federal High Court in Abuja through an application for discontinuance filled by the Director of Public Prosecution of the Federation (DPPF), Mohammed Abubakar, on behalf of the AGF.

According to Abubakar, the discontinuance application was based on provisions of sections 174(1), (b) and (c) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, and 108 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, ACJA, 2015.

The DPPF also applied for further proceedings to be conducted without the presence of the minors in the courtroom, in line with provisions of Section 266(b) of the ACJA, 2015, and Section 1 of the Childs’ Rights Act.

In response, human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Fanala (SAN), who stood in for the accused as well as other defence lawyers in the matter, did not oppose the applications which promoted the judge, Justice Obiora Egwuatu, to strike out the charges, while the four affected minors were also delisted from the charge sheet.

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