Women’s Voices in South-South Migration: Exposing Salient Forms of Xenophobia and Negotiated Ways of Belonging in South Africa

This report contains findings from a research project that explored the South African context as perceived by African women with migration ex- perience. It focuses on African women with migration experience so as to include both African foreign women and South African women mar- ried to foreign nationals, as both groups are affected by similar issues in the South African context. This report will highlight the complexities that exist in the South African context as underscored by the African women with migration experience and explore the ways in which they negotiate and carve out their own forms of belonging in response to some of the issues they face. Even though xenophobia will be discussed in this report, the focus is on the salient forms of xenophobia and less on the highly publicized violent outbursts that occurred in May 2008 and April 2015. This report aims to highlight to policymakers some of the issues that have been overlooked as a result of the heavy focus on the violent aspect of xenophobia by drawing upon the issues articulated by African women with migration experience.