Humanitarian Crisis Averted: South Africa's Government Acts for 153 Palestinians at OR Tambo
Ronald Lamola has intensified criticism over the circumstances surrounding the arrival of a group of Palestinians in South Africa in November
Image: File
Allowing passengers on an aircraft carrying 153 Palestinians to be processed by the local authorities was done as a "humanitarian act", said Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Ronald Lamola.
Lamola was referring to the aircraft that arrived at OR Tambo Airport on November 13 with landing rights, but permissions for the mass entry of foreign passengers into the country were not secured, which posed a significant challenge.
He said the challenge was the work of foreign opportunists who exploited the country's visa-free regime with Palestine to orchestrate the unvetted arrival of the foreigners.
Lamola upped the ante against those responsible during a media interview. The flightwas grounded for over 12 hours, while the government resorted to a humanitarian intervention as officials worked to verify the passengers and determine how the flight was organised.
During his interview on MacG's Podcast and Chill, Lamola said the perpetrators made use of South Africa's visa-free arrangement with Palestine and that intelligence pointed to external interference.
"They exploited a loophole because of the situation in Palestine. We have a visa-free regime with Palestine. So, they exploited that loophole through some players that we suspect involve individuals linked to the Israeli regime.
"That was a South African plane. They had the landing rights and everything and the people. However, when bringing people en masse, agreements must be made between the two governments. There was no such agreement," he added.
Lamola defended Home Affairs Minister Dr Leon Schreiber's initial call to halt entry, saying the irregularities justified precaution. But as conditions on board deteriorated, the government was forced to step in.
"The Minister of Home Affairs made the call, but we supported him because it was evident that we had to act on humanitarian grounds.
"Ultimately, Dirco and Home Affairs agreed to process the passengers, allowing those who wished to depart to do so, and permitting others to remainin accordance with South African immigration law.
"We ultimately agreed to make a humanitarian intervention, processing them through immigration. Those who wished to leave did so, while those who wanted to comply with our laws could remain," he said.
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