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Sikhumbuzo Moyo, [email protected] 

THE majority of people without identity documents are victims of incompetence and corruption at the Civil Registry Department, a Parliamentary portfolio committee on Defence, Home Affairs, Security Service and War Veterans Affairs has heard.

The committee, chaired by Beitbridge East legislator, Hon Albert Nguluvhe, is on a nationwide public hearing programme on stateless migrants in Zimbabwe. On Wednesday, the parliamentary committee was in Bulawayo to gather views from members of the public.

The hearings started in Penhalonga, Manicaland Province on Monday before moving to Chiredzi, Masvingo Province on Tuesday. On Thursday, the committee was in Gweru, Midlands Province and on Friday they were in Harare before winding up the hearings in Bindura, Mashonaland Central on Saturday.

In Bulawayo, members of the public, a majority of whom were from Ngozi Mine in Ward Six and St Peters Village on the outskirts of the city, shared their struggles in accessing documents.

Ms Sikhangezile Maphosa (49) from Ngozi Mine said she has never had any identity document and every time she visited the Civil Registry offices in the city, she was told to bring her parents who have since died.

“I have been to the Civil Registry offices several times but with no success. Unfortunately, I don’t have any money for kickbacks as I have seen some people giving them. I am appealing to your committee to look at this matter and assist us,” said Ms Maphosa.

Ms Xolisile Nyathi from St Peters Village said there are many undocumented people in the area including 88 pupils from St Peters Primary School who are now at risk of failing to write their Grade Seven final examinations.

“The learners cannot get birth certificates because their parents are also not documented. We are struggling to get these documents because some of our parents who were migrants, have since died.

Officers from the civil registry sometimes ask us to give them money in exchange for the service. Those with the means have been assisted,” she said.

Another participant, Ms Sheilla Ndlovu, originally from Mozambique, said she had a waiting pass and when the metal identity card came out, the ID numbers were correct but the picture on the card was not hers.

“I have been going to the civil registry since last year without any success yet I know that all they want is money. If I had US$40, my issue would have been solved a long time ago,” said Ms Ndlovu.

Mr Leonard Phiri, whose parents are Malawians, said he got his waiting pass identity card in 1995 but when the metal ID came, his name had changed to alien.

“In 2018, I renounced my Malawian citizenship and became a Zimbabwean. I did that in Harare and came back here to get my ID with my new nationality. Up to now, I haven’t succeeded and they are now demanding US$50,” he said.

In an interview after the hearings, Hon Nguluvhe said the concerns raised were similar to what they were told in Penhalonga and Chiredzi.

“What is clear is that we have a serious problem with our people in terms of accessing documents and the main culprit is the Civil Registry Department. There is incompetence and blatant corruption which we need to deal with decisively as a committee,” he said. 

“I shall get in touch with the permanent secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage as well as the Registrar-General since we have that oversight role as a committee. In the security sector, a person without an identity document is a threat.”

According to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), a stateless person is defined as someone who is not considered a citizen by any State.

The Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons was adopted on 28 September 1954 and came into force on 6 June 1960. It establishes a framework for the international protection of stateless persons and is the most comprehensive codification of the rights of stateless persons yet attempted at the international level.

For those who qualify as stateless persons, the Convention provides important minimum treatment standards. It requires that stateless persons have the same rights as citizens regarding freedom of religion and their children’s education. For several other rights, such as the right of association, the right to employment, and to housing, it provides that stateless persons are to enjoy, at a minimum, the same treatment as other non-nationals.