Department of Home Affairs has denied ‘no passport’ travel rumours. Image: IOL
(The Post News) – The Department of Home Affairs has shut down viral media and social media claims that Lesotho nationals can now enter South Africa without a passport.
The department warned travelers on Wednesday that a valid passport remains mandatory for all Lesotho nationals entering South Africa. This follows fake claims which spread across the media and social media platforms, TikTok and Facebook this week. The viral reports falsely claimed that Lesotho citizens may enter South Africa with only national identity cards.
The Department of Home Affairs said no agreement exists allowing passport-free entry for Basotho, noting that allowing entry without a valid passport would break the South African Law. “Specifically, such an act would contravene section 9 of the Immigration Act of 2002, which stipulates that no person shall enter or depart from the Republic unless they have a valid passport,” said the department in a statement.
Ministers Meet to Discuss Cross-Border Movement Study
The fake news spread after South Africa and Lesotho’s Home Affairs ministers met in Cape Town on 17 April to reveive a border study report from a joint task team that was established to look at the development of a new migration model. The Bi-National Commision between the two countries ordered the study.
This was the first time that the outcome of the study was presented to the Ministers with various recommendations which are to be considered by the Bi-National Commission. For any such change to even be considered, a legislative process involving Parliament would be required to amend existing immigration laws,” explained the department. The department has warned the public against sharing the false claims.
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