Sema Fonkem 20 June 2026

While the immigration crisis remains a sensitive topic in South Africa , more people are beginning to reveal legal issues faced with Home Affairs.

A Cameroonian national, Lumumba Chia, who is unable to visit his son in Belgium, came forward to share his story at the World Refugee Day conference held in Salt River, Cape Town, on Thursday, June 18, 2026. The event highlighted persistent issues that South African asylum seekers experience.

Lumumba Chia who escaped Cameroon 27 years ago to South Africa due to political tension, holds a refugee permit in South Africa and has filed the necessary applications with the Department of Home Affairs, but he has yet to get travel documents.

In 1999, Chia’s political activism as a student made him a target of President Paul Biya’s regime, which continues to imprison people who are perceived to be anti-government.

According to Chia, some Home Affairs personnel have told him that his documents were not correctly filed, while others say they can’t find anything wrong and that there may be a processing delay.

To travel outside of South Africa, Chia must first secure a refugee ID status before his travel documents may be issued.

“It feels like a deliberate act not to process your documents just to make you frustrated. On paper, there are things you need to do, but in reality it’s not working.” Chia told the audience at the conference.

Chia is one of thousands of refugees and stateless persons who are confronting what many describe as Home Affairs authorities’ unwillingness to follow proper processes, investigate individual cases, and issue permits as required.

With his current position as a stateless person, neither South Africa nor Cameroon acknowledge him as a citizen.

Considering Chia’s statelessness, if he had children in South Africa, he would be unable to confer any citizenship on them.