South African officials called in the National Defence Force (SANDF) to assist police in quelling anti-immigration riots that have seen shops owned by foreign nationals looting in various parts of South Africa.
The use of the army was prompted after violent clashes occurred during demonstrations which were demanding the removal of undocumented migrants, where lighters were seen targeting the stores, and South African Police Service reports showed that law enforcement personnel were deployed to identified areas of unrest such as Hillbrow in Johannesburg.
This move was made after violence erupted with shooting and damage to shops that led to security agencies becoming nervous, and additional personnel being sent into identified areas that included Johannesburg in particular and others across South Africa.
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The South African police arrested more than 900 individuals for a variety of offenses that included but were not limited to immigrational charges, public violence and robbery with lootings and for the harbor of undocumented migrants.
Although protests often take place with calm demonstrations, some demonstrations took place that were accompanied by riots which law enforcement forces had to intervene in several places in South Africa.
An additional two individuals were injured or died during looting in Hillbrow and Alexandra Township, the first was a local that died and the second was a Nigerian citizen that fell to their death as a result of trying to escape through their window for fear of being harmed by protesters, while the latter received additional personnel to maintain the public.
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These riots were organised by anti-immigrational activists who blame migrant workers for unemployment and the breakdown of public services in South Africa, according to South African news media outletNews24.
However, organizations who were human rights activists and migration experts challenged these accusations as the protests exacerbated into what have now turned out to be attacks on many undocumented foreigners, but also a variety of those who had documentation.
Thousands of Nigerians who have made the journey to other parts of the African continent including other African nationals hailing from nations like Nigeria, Malawi and Zimbabwe as well as South Africans seeking to avoid conflict fled their residences and sought refuge with other family members, their respective Embassies and churches and even temporary camps while other countries like Nigeria repatriated willing residents.
South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa condemned the violence that occurred, appealed to all the country’s inhabitants to desist from any forms of violence and to work towards addressing immigration matters within legal and framework of the law.
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The authorities will continue security measures until full order has been re-established.
