Fortress South Africa and the deconstruction of Apartheid's migration regime

South Africa's new democratic government inherited a system of cross-border: migration management rooted in the abusive practices of the past. Under apartheid, employers such as mining companies and white farmers, were exempted from normal immigration legislation. The result was legislation and practices that are in direct conflict with the new government's commitment to transparency, equality, accountability and fundamental human rights. The practices permitted by this system have continued after 1994. This paper documents the continuities in international migration policy and practice between the old and new South Africa and highlights the dilemmas which the government faces in transforming inherited policy. The paper critically analyses the regulatory framework of the bilateral labour agreements and the Aliens Control Act. The paper then highlights policy proposals that contravene the discourse of the fortress and assesses, pessimistically, the likelihood of their implementation before the 1999 elections. (C) 1999 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.