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A group of South Africans who spoke to News24 are asking to be repatriated from South America, fearing that a blockade lasting several months will keep them out of their home country indefinitely.
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They join a line of South Africans scattered in remote locations around the world, desperate to once again feel the South African soil under their feet.
But another South African has ducked into a small piece of paradise and believes he is “in the safest place in the world, right now!”
Dr. Razina Patel and Mahomed Coovadia are at a party of six and represent approximately 30 South Africans who have been trapped in Peru for almost a month.
“Our real concern and fear is that with the number of Covid-19 cases in Peru increasing, the blockages will continue for a few more months, and we will get sick here and be here indefinitely,” Coovadia told News24 this week.
“We have sent emails and we have spoken to people in the highest places. We have spoken with Dirco (Department of International Relations and Cooperation), we have spoken with the director general; we have sent an email to the Minister [Naledi] Pandor, explaining our situation. We don’t know what else to do, “said Patel.
Peruvian experiences
She said it seemed to them that there was a “disconnect” between the Dirco authorities in South Africa and the SA embassy in Peru, and the party.
“Every time we talk to people in South Africa, they don’t know what is happening in Peru. They must tell us what joint efforts they are making. But it is uncoordinated (sic), they seem disinterested. They do not.” He seems to have the enthusiasm or the will to take us home, “said Patel.
Coovadia added that they could not understand why Dirco had been unable to repatriate the group of 30 South Africans, when many other nations had successfully transported thousands of other nationalities safely back home.
But a compatriot, Murray Weiner, told News24 that he was happily in hiding and settled in to wait for the storm.
The man, from the Bot river in Overberg, is now comfortable in Urubamba, in the “Sacred Valley”, not far from the ancient historical site of Machu Piccu.
“I arrived in Peru about a month and a half ago with the task of cooking for a private retreat, I am a chef by trade, in the mountains for 10 days,” he explained.
“Literally the last day I was (due to be) here, I was on a plane, about to leave, when the shutdown occurred.
“The closing was quite strict from the beginning. I didn’t want to stay in Lima, I was a little crazy there. So I returned to a more historic city in the mountains, and I stayed in a hotel with the people I was working for, together with about two or three thousand tourists trapped. I stayed there for a week, until the conditions began to deteriorate, many more restrictions. The closing of the restaurants, the bar, the hotel, they wanted us to stay in our rooms, what I didn’t really like it. So I contacted a Peruvian friend in Cape Town and found, through his family here in Peru, a really nice little place in the country where I have a little cabin.
“I feel very safe, I am surrounded by mountains. Conditions are not as severe as in large cities, but there is a large police and military presence.”
“Looking at what is happening around the world now, I feel like where I am now seems to be the safest. Even trying to get to another part of the world is too risky. I really don’t want to go by plane, with many people, through from various airports and other countries to get home.
“So my thought is to wait here, probably four to six to eight weeks.”
“Later I found a job: The family that owns the cabin runs a small health store and I have come every day to cook food that we sell and deliver,” Weiner said.
“I feel like this area feels a little bit like being in the Franschhoek, Stellenbosch area, it has that kind of feeling. There’s no wine … but people are friendly … I feel like if I had to be idle I’d probably go a little angry so going in and doing some work and offering food has been a fantastic outing for me. “
Trapped in Ivory Coast
He said he didn’t know how much it would cost to get out once the shutdown ends.
In Ivory Coast, Ryan Muller and John D’achada are trapped in Abidjan in Anyama, having been doing church-based work in the African country.
“We paid SAA / Dirco for a flight home, but as far as we can get together, Dirco forgot about us with the other 20 people waiting for one more confirmation.
“The R14,000 we pay for our seats has now put us in a very difficult position to pay for food, water, accommodation and Wi-Fi. We have asked our church to raise funds for our return flight and our daily expenses.” Muller said, adding that they were falling too short.
According to the Daily Maverick, they were prevented from entering neighboring Ghana where the flight was due to depart. Dirco was aware of Abidjan’s problem and was working to find a solution, according to the report.
Meanwhile, a British woman, Chloe Lambert, is trapped in Dubai, but desperate to join her South African husband Ben in her home country. Both have lived in the United Arab Emirates for the past six years, but her husband, from Umtata in the Eastern Cape, took a new job in Johannesburg in January. She was ready to join him when the global pandemic hit.
“I am reluctant to return to the UK because the number of cases there is very high. My two parents are also front-line workers: my mother is an accident and emergency nurse and my father is a police officer. I think ‘I will be back to the UK. I’ll take more risks. I’m desperate to get to South Africa to be with my husband and try to start our life there together, “she told News24.
She admitted that in moments of anxiety “you think the worst” and she worried about seeing her husband again.
How to contact the Dirco command center 24 hours:
– By phone: +27 12351 1754 or +27 12351 1756
– By email: [email protected] and [email protected]
– Stay healthy and entertained during the national closure. Sign up for our Lockdown Living newsletter. Sign up and manage your newsletters in the new News24 application by clicking on the Profile tongue
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