- The government is awaiting a legal opinion on whether it can ask the Constitutional Court to adjust its order on asylum applications.
- Cachalia says the judgment did not sufficiently account for the administrative complications and resources required to implement it.
- Home Affairs has withdrawn its directive from 28 September on asylum applications as the government considers how best to enforce immigration laws and comply with the court ruling.
The government is considering asking the Constitutional Court to adjust its order on asylum applications, with Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia saying the judgment did not fully account for the administrative difficulties and resources required for implementation.
Addressing the media during a visit to KwaZulu-Natal on Friday, 9 October 2026, Cachalia said the government was awaiting a legal opinion on whether it could approach the Constitutional Court to request an adjustment to its order.
“I don’t think the courts took account of the administrative complications and the resources that are required to give effect to their judgment,” he said.
Cachalia was referring to the Constitutional Court’s 7 July 2026 judgment in the Scalabrini Centre of Cape Town matter, which addressed restrictions affecting access to the asylum application process.
He said the government did not have a problem with the judgment once its legal implications were understood, but argued that the practical challenges facing Home Affairs had not been sufficiently anticipated.
The proposed application would seek to give the department time to establish the processes and capacity needed to implement the ruling without undermining the government’s ability to enforce immigration laws.
Government wants faster asylum decisions
Cachalia said the government wanted an expedited process to establish whether people seeking asylum qualified to remain in the country. Applicants whose claims were unsuccessful could then be dealt with under the country’s immigration laws, subject to the applicable legal requirements.
“Nothing that the court has said interferes with our right to enforce our laws against illegal immigration,” he said.
His comments followed protests in Durban and Soweto on Thursday, amid public opposition to illegal immigration and concerns about the implementation of the Constitutional Court judgment.
Cachalia said the government recognised the public’s right to protest and considered concerns about illegal immigration legitimate, particularly amid unemployment, poverty and shortcomings in service delivery.
However, he stressed that government had to address those concerns in a manner consistent with the law, South Africa’s constitutional values and its international obligations.
Home Affairs withdraws asylum directive
The Department of Home Affairs has withdrawn a directive issued on 28 September concerning the processing of asylum applications following the Constitutional Court judgment.
Cachalia said the government would have to determine how asylum seekers’ applications should be processed going forward, taking into account the administrative requirements of implementing the court’s decision.
He also condemned incidents of arson during Thursday’s unrest, warning that violence could undermine public safety, divert police resources and damage business confidence in Durban.
Cachalia said police resources were needed to address a range of public safety concerns, including gender-based violence, and warned that violent protests placed additional demands on law enforcement.
He said the government wanted to address public concerns about illegal immigration without allowing instability to undermine investment, job creation and business activity in KwaZulu-Natal.
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