I RECENTLY travelled to Africa
to holiday with my son,
daughter-in-law and their
two children, both of whom
are under 18. On arrival we
were requested to present
original unabridged birth
certificates; none of us had
heard of this new law and we
were completely unprepared.
We spent four hours at
immigration trying to resolve
the matter. Fortunately we
had travelled with laptops
that had saved copies of the
children’s birth certificates. As
one of the birth certificates
was not in English,we failed
to comply with the new law on
two counts – lack of originals
and lack of certified English
translation. We were travelling
together throughout Africa,
yet it was only in SA where we
experienced an issue.
Beyond the issue of public
non-awareness, there are
numerous inconveniences to
take into account. Most people
consider it ill-advisable to
travel on holiday with original
birth certificates for fear of
losing them. If this happened
during their stay in South
Africa, how would they exit
the country? In addition, if a
person does not possess an
original version of a child’s
birth certificate, or if it is not
in English, there is the added
inconvenience of sourcing
new documentation that
SA authorities will accept.
Single or widowed parents
face even more challenging
requirements, such as court
orders, death certificates, etc.
Taking into account the
inconvenience of securing
correct documentation and the
potential inherent message
that SA is a dangerous child
trafficking destination, as a
grandfather who regularly
travels with grandchildren I feel
compelled to consider other
holiday destinations, in spite of
the unique allure South Africa
offers. Travelling with children
always necessitates more
forward planning, and the new
law introduces an extra layer
of complexity that is already
causing South Africa’s tourism
industry to suffer, and will
continue to do so, unless a
new way forward can be found.
We would be interested to
hear the advice of international
anti-child-trafficking bodies
on effective preventative
policies, as we fully appreciate
that steps must be taken to
combat this criminal activity.
South Africa is currently the
only country that requires
minors to produce an
unabridged birth certificate
in addition to a passport,
yet the many countries that
face human trafficking issues
are implementing alternative
policies. Ideally, a strategy
could be implemented that
effectively addresses the
issue while not detrimentally
affecting tourism. We hope
such a reality can be achieved
for the good of the country, its
people and economy.
Ed’s note
Deputy President Cyril
Ramaphosa was expected
to chair the interministerial
committee
tasked with finding a
solution to the unintended
consequences of SA’s
new visa regulations. The
ministers were expected
to meet on August 5 but
this was postponed to
accommodate the Deputy
President's schedule. The
team includes Ministers
from the economic and
security clusters, which
include the Department of
Tourism.
A report by Grant
Thornton, commissioned
by the Tourism Business
Council of SA, found that
SA lost 66 000 tourists
last year as a result
of the requirement for
visa applications to be
made in person, while
the requirement cost the
economy R2,6 billion.
