Mobs of anti-immigration protestors marched through a town outside Johannesburg, South Africa on Monday, a day after South African President Cyril Ramaphosa promised to take action against groups suspected of inciting xenophobic violence.
South Africa has experienced repeated anti-migrant violence, with protests escalating this year when xenophobic groups demanded unauthorized foreigners depart by June 30.
Protesters chanted and sang as they marched through Kwa-Thema, a township approximately 40 kilometers (25 miles) southeast of Johannesburg, demanding greater government action against illegal immigration.
The march was calm, with some participants carrying sticks, according to footage published by the South African Broadcasting Corporation.
Ramaphosa addressed concerns about illegal immigration but cautioned that the authorities would not allow anyone abusing the law.
“We will and must not allow groups to use the legitimate concerns of South Africans to destabilize our country through inciting lawlessness and violence,” he said in a national address late Sunday.
“We will act against forces who are exploiting the concerns of our people about illegal immigration to further their own political, personal, or criminal agendas.”
The protesters responded quickly, saying they were happy that Ramaphosa had put the matter on the national agenda but pledged to continue their fight.
South Africa, one of Africa’s major economies, has over three million foreigners, accounting for little more than 5% of the total population.
However, unemployment stands at more than 30%, escalating tensions with foreign labor.
In 2008, 62 people were slain in the most violent anti-immigrant incident in two decades.
Violent conflicts also occurred in 2015, 2016, and 2019.
At least two Mozambican people have been slain in the most recent outbreak of violence.
Last month, hundreds of foreign nationals, including people from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Somalia, sought refuge in the eastern port city of Durban, claiming that locals had gone door-to-door demanding they leave by the end of the month.
The instability has caused other countries to plan the repatriation of their citizens.
Ghana has scheduled repatriation flights for hundreds of nationals, while Malawi and Mozambique have organized buses to transport people home.
More than 600 Ghanaians were processed for departure over the weekend, South Africa’s border administration announced on Monday, bringing the total number of individuals who had left to 995.
The first batch of Nigerians is scheduled to leave on Wednesday.
Kenya, Lesotho, and Zimbabwe are among the countries that have advised their nationals in South Africa to be cautious.
