Mozambican Refugee Resettlement: Survival Strategies of Involuntary Migrants in South Africa

As a result of the civil war in Mozambique, thousands of refugees fled to South Africa, where they are officially regarded as illegal immigrants, without the right to seek employment, own livestock, or cultivate land. This study focuses on a refugee settlement (Rhulani) in the Gazankulu 'homeland' of South Africa, comprising approximately 3,000 Mozambican refugees, mainly from Magude province. As a refugee settlement, Rhulani is unusual because of the relatively low intensity of activity by relief organizations, and the role of the 'homeland' government as an intermediary or additional host government over and above the South African one. Five case studies are presented. The paper examines the problems and processes of forced migration and relocation, strategies of adjustment and the ccnsequences of these for the individuals and groups concerned.