President Cyril Ramaphosa has warned anti-immigration groups not to attempt to enforce a self-imposed June 30 deadline for undocumented migrants to leave South Africa, saying immigration enforcement is solely the responsibility of the state.
“The enforcement of immigration laws rests with the state,” Ramaphosa told the National Council of Provinces on Thursday.
“The security forces are ready. Those who transgress the measures we are putting in place will meet the might of the law,” he said.
The warning comes as several citizen-led groups blame undocumented migration for the country’s high unemployment and have set June 30 as a deadline for illegal immigrants to exit. The groups have threatened a “national shutdown” if the government does not act.
Thousands of immigrants have already left South Africa in recent weeks amid a rise in anti-immigrant protests and sporadic violence.
Government officials say enforcement has been intensified. According to the state, 100,000 foreigners have been deported in the last two years, while half a million people were stopped at South Africa’s borders attempting to enter without documents during the same period.
South Africa, Africa’s largest economy, has a long history of xenophobic tension. Migrants from across the continent continue to arrive seeking economic opportunities even as unemployment in the country hovers above 30 percent.
Police have announced increased security deployments nationwide ahead of June 30.
Source: Africanews
