Loren Landau

In recent years Johannesburg’s Central Methodist Church has become home to destitute and desperate South Africans — and a sanctuary for refugees and asylum-seekers from Zimbabwe and elsewhere. At 11pm on January 30 the South African Police Service (SAPS) raided the church apparently in search of guns, drugs and illegal immigrants.

Next Wednesday is World Refugee Day. But unlike Youth Day or Women’s Day, this annual commemoration honours a group we would rather did not exist. For some, refugees are a painful reminder of the crises, conflicts and oppression that characterise far too much of our continent.