Doctor who fled Congo after family was burned to death in court battle to stay in SA

A Congolese refugee who fled persecution in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and built a new life in South Africa is fighting to retain his refugee status after it was withdrawn by the Standing Committee for Refugee Affairs (SCRA).

Dr Tshimbalanga Kabula, a medical doctor, studied in Kinshasa before working at a hospital in South Kivu, where his family lived. While serving in South Kivu, Kabula claims he defied government orders to neglect or harm rebels admitted to the hospital.

He alleges that this defiance led to military authorities victimising him and subsequently killing his parents and brother by burning them alive.

Kabula fled the DRC and was granted asylum in South Africa in 2012. He later married Dr Mudiayi Sylvie Cibidi and had his refugee status renewed multiple times. In 2018, after six years in South Africa, Kabula applied for certification of his refugee status to remain indefinitely in the country.

However, in January 2019, Karl Sloth-Nielsen, chairperson of the SCRA, issued Kabula a letter informing him of the committee’s intention to revoke his refugee status. Kabula was invited to submit representations to contest the decision, but these were unsuccessful. The SCRA argued that Kabula’s circumstances no longer justified refugee protection, citing the absence of violence in his home region over the past decade.

SCRA suggested that Kabula could safely return to Kinshasa, where he had previously studied. Kabula contested this, stating his roots were in South Kivu and Kasai Oriental Province, where his extended family lived. He explained that his time in Kinshasa was solely for academic purposes.

“Kinshasa was never my home. I did not begin my career there, buy property, or make any commitments associated with settling down,” Kabula stated.

After his representations were dismissed, Kabula sought relief in the Western Cape High Court. Acting Judge Mthimunye found that the Refugee Status Determination Officer’s (RSDO) original 2012 assessment had identified a genuine risk of persecution for Kabula if he returned to the DRC. The judge noted that the SCRA provided no updated evidence to substantiate its claim that Kabula’s circumstances had changed.

“There is a lack of satisfactory reasoning regarding the basis for this conclusion, and the SCRA has not provided any documentation demonstrating consultation with the RSDO to establish whether Kabula’s safety would be assured upon returning to his country of origin,” said Judge Mthimunye.

The court dismissed the SCRA’s decision to revoke Kabula’s refugee status and referred the matter back for proper reconsideration.

sinenhlanhla.masilela@iol.co.za

IOL