Lawyers for Human Rights attorney Mametlwe Sebei has criticised President Cyril Ramaphosa’s address to the nation on Sunday, describing the government’s response to rising anti-foreigner violence as inadequate.
Speaking to VOC News, Sebei said the President had failed to strongly condemn the recent attacks against foreign nationals.
“The speech was very lame. One would have expected him to unequivocally condemn these reactionary and violent mobilisations. People have been killed. There is no way he can speak as if that has not happened,” Sebei said.
He argued that the government had not taken decisive action against those responsible for the violence, adding that the state was failing to address the broader social and economic conditions fuelling tensions.
Civil society group Global South Against Xenophobia (GSAX) echoed some of those concerns. In a statement, the organisation said Ramaphosa’s address failed to outline clear law enforcement and prosecutorial measures to stop xenophobic attacks. GSAX also criticised the lack of interventions for migrants left undocumented due to delays within the Department of Home Affairs.
Meanwhile, ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba dismissed the President’s address, saying it amounted to “a scripted repetition of the same failed policies” that had contributed to South Africa’s immigration challenges.
ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula, however, called for a comprehensive legal response to illegal mobilisation, warning that such actions could encourage vigilantism. He maintained that South Africa is not a xenophobic country and that illegal immigration is a global challenge.
The debate comes as the Border Management Authority confirmed the repatriation of 663 Ghanaian nationals from South Africa over the weekend. The operation, conducted through OR Tambo International Airport, involved individuals who had overstayed their visas and were declared undesirable under the Immigration Act.
Ramaphosa’s address sought to outline the government’s approach to illegal migration and recent protests against foreign nationals, but the varied reactions highlight the ongoing divide over how South Africa should manage immigration while safeguarding human rights and social stability.
Photo: X/@GovernmentZA
