ONLY 12% of the more than 75,000 asylum seekers who applied for refugee status in SA last year were successful, a sign that the system was being clogged up by economic migrants without a political claim to stay in the country.Deputy director-general of home affairs Thulani Mavuso told Parliament’s portfolio committee on home affairs on Tuesday that the department would this year seek to amend the Refugee Act of 1998 to speed up the processing of asylum applications.Recurring violence against foreigners has placed policy makers under pressure to address the presence of large numbers of migrants competing with locals in low-skill jobs and small-scale business enterprises.The Refugee Act, which is based on the Geneva Conventions, gives every individual from no matter where an opportunity to present their case for asylum. Large numbers of applicants and cumbersome appeal processes have meant that asylum seekers without a legitimate claim can legally live and work in SA for many years wh...
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