On Sunday 11 October the government said it will ask the Constitutional Court for a supervisory order on how its asylum ruling is carried out (IOL, The Citizen, SABC News, News24). Justice Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi set out the plan after the inter-ministerial committee on migration briefed the media. The ruling holds that foreign nationals can apply for asylum even if they are in the country illegally (SABC News). The Citizen reported a phased registration model by 10 November, and SABC News reported a biometric system to prevent abuse. Acting National Police Commissioner Lt-Gen Puleng Dimpane said police had made 30 arrests in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng since Thursday (IOL). Protesters were camped outside the Durban Home Affairs office and vowed to block its reopening (SABC News). Parliament's Home Affairs committee called for an urgent meeting on implementation (The Citizen).
A supervisory order would put the court, not only the department, in charge of the timetable. It also shows the government is trying to calm streets that have already seen violence, without reversing a binding judgment.
If you need a Home Affairs office in Durban or Gauteng, expect closures or queues and check before travelling. Foreign-born residents and their employers should watch for the new registration rules.
Government and the committee say the court's ruling must be implemented in an orderly, secure way, and that citizens' concerns are legitimate.
Protesters say they are blocking offices because they do not trust the system; rights groups would say violence cannot be the answer to a court judgment.
The court application is the real test: watch for a filing date and for whether Durban's Home Affairs office reopens without new clashes. DailyDrop has seen neither yet.
IOL, The Citizen, SABC News, News24, Daily Maverick (11 Oct 2026)
Government will ask the Constitutional Court to oversee its asylum ruling as protests spreadGovernment will ask the Constitutional Court to oversee its asylum ruling as protests spread
Ministers said on Sunday the court should supervise how its judgment is carried out. Police report 30 arrests since Thursday in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng.
The government said on Sunday 11 October that it will go back to the Constitutional Court and ask for a supervisory order on how the court's ruling on asylum applications is put into practice, according to IOL, The Citizen, SABC News and News24. The Citizen explained that such an order would let the court keep oversight of the process and guide how its judgment is carried out. It had earlier described the step as a way of buying Home Affairs time. The plan was set out by Justice Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi after the inter-ministerial committee (IMC) on migration briefed the media. The ruling, SABC reported, holds that foreign nationals can apply for asylum even when they are in the country illegally. Courts reach for supervision when they doubt that a department can meet a deadline on its own, which is why the request is being read as an admission that Home Affairs needs more time and a clearer plan. The Citizen reported that Kubayi said Home Affairs plans a phased registration model by 10 November. SABC News reported that Home Affairs will add a biometric system to stop applicants abusing the process, and quoted Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber as saying the new system will let the department build in more security features. eNCA carried a warning from Schreiber that "chancers" would be caught out. Those controls matter because the pressure on the asylum system has fed public anger at Home Affairs offices. The department has not said how many people are waiting for decisions, and DailyDrop has not seen the court application or a filing date, so it is not yet clear when judges could hear the request.
The announcement came while the streets stayed tense. Acting National Police Commissioner Lt-Gen Puleng Dimpane said intelligence-led operations had produced 30 arrests in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng since Thursday, IOL reported. SABC News said protesters were camped outside the Home Affairs office in Durban and vowed to block its reopening, after foreign nationals were allowed to lodge asylum applications. Daily Maverick described Durban as being in an uneasy calm and asked whether the state can keep a lid on the violence. Parliament's Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs, The Citizen reported, said South Africans come first and that their concerns are legitimate, and that it will call an urgent meeting to question how the judgment is being implemented. The date has not been announced. The risk for the government is plain: a court that supervises can set deadlines, and protesters who feel ignored can set their own. For the government the dilemma is that the protesters want fewer foreigners registered, while the court has said the right to apply cannot be denied. Readers should expect Home Affairs queues, office closures and reopenings in the next few days to depend on what police and the court allow. No deaths from the unrest have been confirmed in the reports DailyDrop has seen.