they were infiltrated by CIO, and would become silent whenever these suspected individuals made an appearance on passages nearby. Nobody we spoke to would live in South Africa or make the long journeys to and fro, if they saw any alternative. It said something profound to us to realise that tough though people’s lives in South Africa are, they nonetheless see this as preferable to life in Zimbabwe 3. Musina: life in a small border town The authors made several trips to Musina, which is 20 km from the border, to establish living conditions there for Zimbabweans, and also to inquire about official and NGO policy towards Zimbabweans in this small town, where the number of Zimbabweans may be proportionally among the largest in South Africa. Most adults arriving in Musina use it as a short term stepping stone to move on to Johannesburg or elsewhere, and pass very quickly through the area; although on any day there may be hundreds of Zimbabweans, from day to day the faces change. Those who tend to stay longer than a day or two are migrant farm workers, and unaccompanied minors. Farm workers Migrant Zimbabweans are employed in the farms in the Musina area, and in some cases, Zimbabwean families have been migrant workers on certain farms for generations. However, RI reported that when they interviewed Zimbabweans working on farms near Musina, it was clear that this group now includes farm workers who have been displaced through farm invasions, who report political abuse, assaults and harassment by ZANU PF as their reasons for leaving Zimbabwe.144 This group is very afraid of being deported and does not fit the previous seasonal workers’ mould, being clearly eligible for asylum seeker status. However, the nearest RRO is in Pretoria, around 450 km away. Unaccompanied minors Small communities of Zimbabwean unaccompanied minors have been identified in this area. Children aged between 12 and 18 who make it from Zimbabwe as far as Musina often make it no further. They realise they do not have the resources to get as far as Johannesburg, and may be afraid of life in such a big city. Some arrive in Musina and think this is Johannesburg!145 A study by the Centre for Positive Care (CPC) in Musina, an NGO that has a reception office for unaccompanied children of all nationalities, describes in detail different aspects of the lives of unaccompanied Zimbabwean children identified in Musina.146 The CPC study interviewed a group of 28 children in Musina. All 17 boys were Zimbabwean, and out of 11 girls, all but three were from Zimbabwe. The boys were living either in the lockers that the taxi drivers use at the taxi ranks, or near the municipal rubbish dump. Some stayed with farm workers. Most of the children were aged between 14 and 16. They came from all over Zimbabwe, from as far afield as Chiredzi, Mucheke, Masvingo and Gokwe. None of these towns are within the traditional border crossing areas. Sixteen of them had lost either one or both parents, and all reported crossing the border to earn money in South Africa. 144 RI, 14 July 2004, op cit. From our own interviews, and information from the Centre for Positive Care in Musina. 146 CPC, “Poverty made this decision for me”: children in Musina: their needs and experiences, August 2003. 145 62