Security has been heightened in parts of Johannesburg and Durban, South Africa, following a second consecutive day of violent protests targeting foreign nationals.
Demonstrators reportedly set cars ablaze, attacked foreigners, looted shops and threw bricks and bottles on Friday, prompting police to deploy tear gas and stun grenades to disperse the crowds.
The unrest followed widespread misinformation surrounding a Home Affairs directive on implementing a Constitutional Court ruling on the processing of asylum applications.
The directive stated that asylum seekers should be allowed to submit applications even if they entered South Africa without the required documentation. The development prompted hundreds of people to gather at refugee reception centres.
However, the directive fuelled anger among anti-immigrant campaigners, amid false claims that undocumented migrants would automatically receive legal status.
Community leader Tshepo Mposula accused the government of prioritising foreign nationals over local residents.
“This government is so obsessed with the foreigners, they will do whatever it takes to protect, you know, illegal foreigners,” he said.
Local councillor Mpumi Edward also criticised the government’s approach, arguing that undocumented migrants should face legal consequences rather than be documented.
“Because all these people have come to this country illegally, and we should be jailing them instead of documenting them,” she said.
In an attempt to ease tensions, the Home Affairs Ministry withdrew the directive on Friday, announcing plans to develop a new framework that complies with the Constitutional Court’s ruling.
The violence comes amid a broader wave of anti-immigrant mobilisation, with groups such as March and March organising demonstrations across the country throughout the year.
An unofficial deadline issued by the group on June 30, calling on foreigners to leave South Africa, reportedly prompted tens of thousands of people from other African countries to flee the country.
In June, the government announced measures to manage migration, including tighter border controls, a crackdown on human smuggling and faster deportations of people who do not qualify to remain in the country.
South Africa, the continent’s largest economy, has long attracted migrants from across Africa seeking employment and better economic opportunities.
However, the country has experienced periodic outbreaks of xenophobic violence for nearly two decades, often fuelled by allegations, disputed by migrant communities and their supporters, that foreign nationals compete with locals for jobs, housing and public services.
Concerns about undocumented immigration have also become more prominent ahead of South Africa’s local government elections scheduled for November 4.
The issue is unfolding alongside persistent economic pressures, with unemployment exceeding 30 per cent and job creation remaining a major concern for the government and communities.
