Members of the Regional Immigration Compliance Unit at Beitbridge Border Post check documents of travellers under an operation to sniff out illegal immigrants, touts, conmen and undocumented migrants entering the country and those leaving for South Africa. – Picture: Thupeyo Muleya
Thupeyo Muleya Beitbridge Bureau
THE Department of Immigration’s Regional Compliance and Enforcement Unit said yesterday it is not relenting on its quest to prevent criminals and illegal migrants/immigrants from accessing the transformed Beitbridge Border Post.
Figures from the department show that 2 383 people were turned away at the border, while 1 781 were arrested for various offences relating to illegal activities between Zimbabwe and South Africa in the last three weeks.
The on-going regional compliance operation, which is also supported by the local police, is meant to curtail criminal activities, among them border jumping, touting, the use of fake immigration stamps, and fake travel documents that are synonymous with a surge in human traffic.
The Head of Immigration Compliance and Enforcement at Beitbridge, Mrs Canisia Magaya said they were working with other border agencies who are part of the enforcement committee to deal with the problem of touts, vendors, and vagrants on the border.
She said they rounded up the offenders from the freight, bus and light vehicles and pedestrians’ terminals between September 12 and October 2.
“We are not relenting on our quest to maintain safety and security of travellers and ensuring we have a flawless flow of traffic this festive season,” said Mrs Magaya.
“Our regional enforcement and compliance remains firm on the ground. We worked with other border agencies including the ZRP and between September 12 and October 2, they arrested 2 383 people for various border violation related offences.”
Mrs Magaya said during the same period, a total of 288 people were refused entry into South Africa, while 276 could not enter Zimbabwe.
These include citizens from DRC, Egypt, Ethiopian, Malawi, Mozambique, Pakistan and other countries.
Some had no valid permits, no passports or no departure stamps from the sending countries.
“We have deployed enough manpower and are targeting all known hotspots and areas,” said Mrs Magaya.
“At the same time, the department is urging travellers to continuously use the designated port of entry and exit for their own safety.
“They should approach the immigration office should they have any questions or queries. The touts are always eager to pounce on them and take advantage of their lack of information on certain migration issues. We promise to make the border a safe transit point for their own good.”
The compliance operation is ongoing and Mrs Magaya said they will not give the criminals breathing space.
By the end of the day yesterday, the enforcement teams were hard at work conducting spot checks of most vehicles and buses entering and leaving the country through the border.
The automation of services and separation of traffic at the transformed Beitbridge Border Post has become a game changer and enhanced efficiency and security systems at the country’s busiest port of entry.
Source ZimSituation
