Cape Town: Refugees vow to “walk in convoy” to another country

The refugee crisis in Cape Town has deepened over the past few days, as violent clashes with police and UN security forces have characterised their struggle. Hundreds of foreign nationals desperate to leave South Africa have become frustrated with a lack of progress on the matter, and many are ready to take the issue into their own hands.

Refugees threaten to “walk out” of South Africa

Many of the refugees – who have fled from wartorn nations across Africa, but now want to leave SA due to alleged xenophobia – do not wish to be repatriated. The group’s request to be sent to Canada hasn’t been granted, so their next step could be the biggest of them all – the disgruntled lot are prepared to “walk in convoy” to either Botswana or Namibia.

The refugees ended up fighting with religious leaders as the SA Human Rights Commissioner on Friday Things got out of hand after faith leaders, Anglican Archbishop Thabo Makgoba, himself and a Congolese pastor, addressed the refugees about the options that currently lie at their disposal, after engagements with the Department of Home Affairs.

The group are currently camped out at the Cape Town Methodist Church on Greenmarket Square. Around 200 of them have sought sanctuary in the religious venue, but they’re now ready to leave for good. But just how practical – or even possible – is it to walk from the Mother City to the nearest international border?

How long it’d take to walk from Cape Town to Namibia or Botswana

It would take almost seven days to reach the border crossing to Oranjemund in Namibia on foot, if you started from the Cape Town Methodist Church. The final leg of the journey would see the human convoy cross the R382 over the Oranje River, where they could access Namibia from the south. The total length of the walk would be an agonising 500-mile trip – which is more than 800km.

Meanwhile, getting to Botswana would be an absolute grueller. That’s an 11-day trek to the nearest border-town of Bokspits, totalling 636 miles – or 1 020km. It’s truly a feat of human endurance that’s as impressive as it is heartbreaking, but these “migrant caravans” have been highly-publicised recently.

The US government flipped its lid last year, when a human convoy made its way through Central America. What started off as thousands of refugees dwindled to a few hundred, who were greeted with a hostile reception even before they reached the American border. The risks these people take to gain asylum are extreme.

Hundreds of refugees in Cape Town taking shelter, say if their request to be relocated to other countries is not granted, they will start walking in convoy. #MorningLive #SABCNews pic.twitter.com/cchqG9Klgo

— MorningLiveSABC (@MorningLiveSABC) November 19, 2019