The Paradox of Jewish Emigration from South Africa in the Post-Apartheid Era

• In Event: Migration Patterns in the Contemporary Jewish World

Abstract

Since peaking in the 1970s, the size of the South African Jewish population has significantly contracted, primarily due to emigration. Despite the peaceful transition in 1994 to a democratically elected government that adopted moderate economic policies, Jewish emigration has persisted. The paradox of this emigration story is that Jewish life in South Africa is good. Overall, the South African Jewish community is highly educated with low unemployment. Expressions of Jewish identity are strong, Jewish school attendance is high, intermarriage is low, Jewish welfare infrastructure and support is extensive and the community is well organised. The climate is sunny and the cost of living comparatively low. Yet against this favourable backdrop there is a constant stream of emigration. Our paper, which draws on findings from the 2019 Jewish Community Survey of South Africa and similar surveys carried out in 2005 and 1998, sets out to answer the ‘what, where and why’ of South African Jewish emigration in the post-apartheid era (post-1994). The key findings are that emigration trends have not been constant and the sentiment towards emigration in the community has been responsive to the prevailing socioeconomic conditions in the country with respondents most likely to emigrate in the late 1990s and least likely in the mid-2000s. In 2019, 15% of all respondents indicated that they were likely to emigrate. The last two decades have seen a noticeable shift in the main destination countries for emigrants, away from Australia and the United States towards Israel. The main reasons for wanting to emigrate have also changed over time. increasingly, it is a concern about the future that is motivating emigration. Other factors include concerns about crime, connection to family already living abroad and for some, a desire to live in Israel.

Author

• Reviva Hasson, Kaplan Centre for Jewish Studies