The arbitrary 30 June “deadline” set by anti-migrant activists as the date by which their campaigns say undocumented foreigners must leave the country is claiming headline attention as senior political figures weigh in on what has become a critical test of South Africans’ constitutional convictions.
At the centre of it all is former radio show host, Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma, who – as the Daily Maverick reports – says her movement, March and March, is apolitical. But, as the DM goes on, “while multiple parties have legitimised her anti-immigrant agenda, at least two parties have actively furthered it, stoking fears ahead of March and March’s ominous 30 June deadline, with multiple immigrants killed and thousands already displaced across the country”.
Speaking at a media briefing yesterday, Inter-Ministerial Committee on Migration chairperson and justice minister Mmamoloko Kubayi warned that violence, intimidation and targeting of undocumented migrants would not be tolerated during planned nationwide protests next Tuesday.
Kubayi said law enforcement agencies had been deployed across the country to ensure public safety and that no disruption of economic or social activity would be tolerated.
“The enforcement of the law is the responsibility of the state,” Kubayi said, adding that no member of the public was allowed to demand identity documents or proof of nationality from anyone, block access to hospitals, schools or clinics, or intimidate people because of their nationality.
Kubayi also warned that misinformation, hate speech and calls for violence on social media would be investigated and prosecuted.
She added that police had intensified intelligence-led operations. As of 21 June, authorities had registered 89 public order and incitement-related criminal cases, up from 53 the previous week.
A total of 164 people had been arrested for offences including inciting violence and breaking the Regulation of Gatherings Act, while investigations continued.
Speaking through the leader of the Zulu royal regiments, Sipho Mhlongo, AmaZulu King Misuzulu kaZwelithi acknowledged protest as a constitutional right, but asked the royal regiments and chiefs to prevent “foreign nationals from being harmed or beaten” on 30 June.
Speaking in Mayville, Durban, Sipho Mhlongo, the leader of the amabutho (Zulu royal regiments), told izinduna (headmen) and amakhosi (chiefs) that Misizulu had urged restraint during the planned protests.
“The king said he knows there is a march planned for 30 June and that he is not stopping anyone from marching because it is a constitutional right,” Mhlongo said.
“He also knows the nation is aggrieved about many things. He is not against the march and knows that people who are in South Africa illegally should return home.
“He only asks for one thing: that we prevent foreign nationals from being harmed or beaten. No one should be seen taking cabbage from hawkers, looting stores, or stealing.
“I am asking you, Zulu nation, nation of the mighty iLembe, let there be no bloodshed. Do not beat these people up. They are here because they are poor. We are also poor; we will be poor together. It does not mean that we must beat them up.”
News24 notes that Mhlongo’s message, which he attributed to the king, “struck a darker, more hostile tone than Misuzulu’s direct appeal to the Zulu nation”.
He said the king’s core message was clear: foreigners must leave the country peacefully, without coercion or violence.
“There must not be a situation where people cannot go home because we have destroyed the roads, or where they are in hiding because we want to beat them,” Mhlongo added.
“No, they should leave in peace. No one is going to do something wrong on that day.”
He reminded attendees that the late King Goodwill Zwelithini had made a similar appeal.
“He said no one is homeless, everyone has a home, and when it is time to return home, they should leave. The province is overpopulated. We also want to be able to breathe.”
In other reporting, home affairs minister Leon Schreiber said the government was determined to manage deportations in a lawful, orderly and humane way.
He acknowledged that deportations come at a financial cost but argued that failing to enforce immigration laws would ultimately cost the country even more.
Schreiber said the new processing facility near Beitbridge would allow authorities to centralise operations and improve the verification of migrants before they leave South Africa.
He added that reforms, including recording biometrics for everyone entering the country through the electronic travel authorisation system, would strengthen immigration management in the future.
He also appealed to South Africans not to strip people of their dignity because they were suspected of breaking immigration laws.
“A person does not forfeit their right to life, dignity and humanity because they have broken the law,” Schreiber said.
He said no individual or community group had the authority to enforce immigration laws, demand identification documents or engage in vigilantism or xenophobia.
The Daily Maverick writes that the “scale and sophistication” of March and March’s actions across South Africa have prompted questions about who finances its mobilisation. It also notes that March and March is “building other strong political linkages ahead of the polls”. The anti-migrant group has held engagements with political parties, including ActionSA, MK, the Patriotic Alliance (PA), and the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), but denied that such engagements meant it was aligned with any political organisation.
ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba, in particular, had said he would “celebrate” if Ngobese-Zuma made herself available to be the party’s mayoral candidate in eThekwini, the DM reported.
Earlier in the week, Mosa Chabane, chair of parliament’s portfolio committee on home affairs, called on South Africans demonstrating towards and beyond June 30 to exercise restraint and calm, and voice their “legitimate concerns” within the confines of the law.
Addressing the media in parliament’s National Council of Provinces library on Thursday, Chabane said South Africans have a right to protest, which is protected by the constitution.
“South Africans are not xenophobic. I think it is a call parliament has been making to all stakeholders, and we have been clear around that line. We must emphasise all South Africans, including members of parliament and the media, are empowered by the constitution to raise our grievances, but we must do that within the confines of the law.”
Chabane expressed confidence in the ability of the security cluster of government departments to maintain order on June 30 and beyond.
“All of us, even those who are going to march, are going to be protected. But they must march within the guidelines of the law. We share the concerns of South Africans where it relates to any individual who undermines the constitution.”
Chabane said challenges around migration, including fraudulent documents and syndicates that peddled them, needed urgent attention. He was encouraged by an interim report from the Special Investigating Unit that showed an increase in arrests, convictions and prosecutions for dealing in fraudulent documents.
Asylum appeal case backlogs remain a concern.
The chair of the portfolio committee on correctional services, Kgomotso Ramolobeng, called for speedier updates to migration legislation so that a memorandum of agreement South Africa had with Botswana on the repatriation of offenders could be extended consistently throughout the region.
Sources: Business Day, News24, TimesLIVE, Daily Maverick
[Image: James Beheshti on Unsplash]