A five-year entry ban imposed by South Africa (SA) on 472 repatriated Kenyan citizens has triggered widespread distress, separating families and leaving returnees unable to rejoin spouses and young children.

The citizens voluntarily returned to Kenya aboard state-sponsored flights in July following anti-foreigner unrest and targeted raids. However, returnees report that SA immigration officials processed five-year re-entry bans against them regardless of whether they held valid documentation.

The restrictions have heavily impacted affected households, with parents reporting total separation from young dependents who remain in SA.

Despite growing calls from returnee groups for diplomatic intervention to lift the bans and provide promised reintegration support, Kenyan diaspora officials have publicly denied that a blanket ban was agreed upon during the evacuation process.

–ChannelAfrica–