Thousands of South Africans Seeking Refugee Status Abroad, Says New Report

JOHANNESBURG—Growing numbers of South Africans are applying for asylum in North America, Europe, and Australasia, joining people from war zones such as Ukraine, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Haiti, according to the first-ever Migration Profile Report for South Africa. The document was compiled by the South African government’s official statistics service, Stats SA, using local data and information from several United Nations agencies and the European Union. The report says South Africans leaving the land of their birth consider themselves “refugees,” describing the country as “at war with itself” because of its high rates of violent crime, including murder, rape and armed robbery....