20101231
reuters

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Queues stretched for kilometres at immigration offices in South Africa on Friday as thousands of Zimbabweans tried to meet a year-end deadline to file papers for legalising their stay in the country.

South Africa allowed hundreds of thousands from Zimbabwe to enter without documents about two years ago when its neighbour was swept up in political violence and its already unsteady economy collapsed under the weight of hyperinflation.

More than 200,000 had already applied for visas, the Home Affairs Ministry said, far short of what non-governmental groups said could be as many as 1.5 million to 2.5 million Zimbabweans in South Africa, the continent's largest economy.

"We need an extension. There are just too many of us here," said Zimbabwean IT technician Phakamami Dube, one of the few who has received a proper visa.

With unemployment at 25 percent, South Africa has faced criticism from its poor for allowing Zimbabweans, the largest immigrant group in the state, to enter its territory without documents. The Zimbabweans fill a vast array of jobs, from menial labourers to highly paid professionals.

The deadline sets the stage for a mass deportation next year that could spark fresh violence directed at foreigners, after deadly attacks two years ago unnerved investors and rattled the government.

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South Africa has extended working hours at immigration offices and eased paperwork requirements to make it easier to apply.