Mbabane: Foreign Affairs Minister and International Cooperation, Thulisile Dladla has said all emaSwati in South Africa should rethink returning to Eswatini at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic which has seen numbers of those affected rising to over 270 as of Wednesday. She said they might not be able to return to that country when the need arises, due to strict measures that the foreign affairs ministry in SA is considering and that could result in those seeking to go back losing their jobs and study permits.
The minister said, they recently engaged the South African Government on allowing emaSwati to pass through South Africa to other countries like Botswana, especially those studying or working in that country. She said the republic was very determined on enforcing the government’s regulations and would not compromise the safety of South Africans who are not infected by the virus.
South Africa has issued strict measures on foreign immigrants to the extent of restricting passage to other countries.
On June 1, South Africa will move on to level three lockdown wherein some measures to contain the virus would be relaxed.
44 emaSwati return to country, quarantined at Mavuso
The minister mentioned that 600 emaSwati applied to return to Eswatini with 36 recalled in the first group. The second group, consisting of 44 citizens have just entered the country and are quarantined at Mavuso Exhibition Centre. In total, 80 emaSwati have been returned to the country.
The minister said there are those in the first group who have sought to return to South Africa but were turned down by the latter government, the only consolation being to allow those doing the last year in medicine.
The minister said the limited numbers allowed to return to South Africa can be attributed to the wide spectrum of immigrants the country deals with. Dladla said another reason South Africa would not want to allow big groups into the country could be to ensure social distancing, which would prove difficult with a lot of people in one place. She said like other countries, South Africa quarantines anyone coming from outside the country and with big numbers of people space could be limited.
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