Home Affairs withdraws asylum directive after refugee offices overwhelmed

This follows unrest in Durban and Soweto after a September directive allowed asylum seekers to lodge asylum applications.
The Department of Home Affairs has withdrawn a September directive allowing asylum seekers to lodge applications following a Constitutional Court ruling that they could not be excluded from the asylum process solely because they had entered South Africa irregularly.
The September directive was issued without the knowledge of Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber, says a statement issued on Friday by the department.