Migrant tensions expose cracks

South Africa’s policing and intelligence systems are under strain, limiting the state’s ability to respond to the threats

SOUTH Africa’s anti-foreign nationals campaign is fast becoming a test of state authority, with communities increasingly taking matters into their own hands amid rising frustration over crime, migration and weak law enforcement.

While the government maintains that only the state can enforce immigration law, security experts warn that public perception, and not verified evidence, is increasingly shaping events on the ground, and raising concerns about vigilantism.

“At the end of the day, it’s about perception. Whatever the statistics say, the person in the township will act on what they believe is happening,” said Willem Els, a crime analyst at the Institute for Security Studies.

He said South Africa is seen in parts of the continent as a “Europe in Africa” – a place of opportunity compared to countries struggling with poverty, instability and unemployment. That perception, he said, fuels migration flows from countries, with many migrants paying smugglers to reach South Africa.

According to Els the routes are structured and controlled by criminal networks that shift operations when borders tighten or conflict causes disruption. He said that migrants move through multiple transit countries such as Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Zimbabwe and Botswana, by exploiting porous borders.

Els warned that corruption in parts of the border management system adds another layer to the problem, pointing to what he described as “state-embedded actors” which are officials in policing, customs and border control who are compromised and help facilitate the illicit movement across borders. He said this was part of broader organised crime systems which involved human trafficking and smuggling networks.

Migration itself, he said, was not the issue. The problem emerged when it is unmanaged or poorly controlled. He pointed to Europe and the US as examples where migration issues have triggered political backlash. Els added that most undocumented migrants entering South Africa were not highly skilled. That gap between expectation and economic reality, creates pressure at community level and can increase vulnerability to exploitation and, in some cases, criminal activity.

Els also warned that South Africa’s policing and intelligence systems are under strain, arguing that crime intelligence is often reactive rather than proactive, which limited the state’s ability to respond to emerging threats as they are developing.

He likened the anti-migrant groups to the anti-crime movement People Against Gangsters and Drugs (Pagad) which emerged in Cape Town in the mid 90s. It started out as a group of community members who were frustrated with what they believed was the police’s failure to stop crime. As its membership grew and its actions intensified, it was eventually described as a vigilante group. Els said when such organisations took root it was not a positive development. “This creates an environment conducive to violence, xenophobia, and people taking the law into their own hands.”

At the Sherwood Hall transit site in Durban, the situation has become a focal point of wider tensions which are playing out across parts of the country. What was intended as a temporary holding and assistance space for foreign nationals seeking repatriation has, in recent days, become a site of uncertainty and mounting anxiety. There were also clashes when authorities wanted to move some of them to another site.

Some of the affected people interviewed said there was confusion over timelines and procedures, while others said their fear of confrontation in surrounding communities pushed them to seek shelter at the facility. Many of them fled their homes with only the clothes they were wearing. The presence of police units and sporadic crowd control measures has added to the sense of instability, with the authorities attempting to manage security risks and humanitarian concerns at the same time.

Officials have maintained that repatriation processes are continuing, but acknowledged that capacity constraints and administrative delays have complicated operations. In some cases, the verification of nationality from countries of origin has slowed repatriation attempts, leaving individuals in temporary facilities for longer than intended. The Department of Home Affairs has pointed to these backlogs as one of the pressure points in the system, alongside overcrowding at detention facilities such as Lindela and co-ordination challenges between agencies responsible for immigration enforcement.

At the same time, anti-illegal immigration groups have mobilised in parts of the country, framing their actions as community responses to crime and weak enforcement. The authorities have warned that any intimidation or harassment of foreign nationals will be treated as criminal conduct, but incidents of confrontation have continued to surface in pockets of Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal. There has also been some activity in Cape Town.

Security officials say the concern is not only the immediate protests, but the possibility that local incidents could escalate or spread, particularly in areas where policing resources are already stretched. This has placed additional pressure on law enforcement, which is being forced to balance visible deployments with longerterm intelligence monitoring.

The situation has also drawn legal and international attention. Human rights lawyer Zehir Omar said documents were submitted to international bodies on Thursday, arguing that the state’s response to attacks and intimidation against foreign nationals warranted international scrutiny. He said the matter had been escalated on behalf of his client, the Society for the Protection of the Constitution, citing constitutional and human rights concerns.

Iran’s ambassador to South Africa, Mansour Shakib Mehr, also weighed in on the unrest, framing it as part of wider global geopolitical dynamics rather than a purely domestic issue. He suggested that forces beyond the visible actors may be involved, although he did not provide evidence or name anyone. “I think everybody knows what’s the story of this unrest,” he said, adding that while he could not specify who was behind it, “it is quite clear who is behind.”

Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia warned that only the state has the authority to enforce immigration law, saying no individual or group may detain or intimidate foreign nationals, and confirming that those responsible for such actions would face arrest.

President Cyril Ramaphosa has held consultations with traditional and religious leaders as part of efforts to manage tensions linked to illegal immigration and public unrest.

Minister of International Relations and Co-operation Ronald Lamola has said recent deaths of foreign nationals were linked to organised crime rather than xenophobic violence, while investigations into other reported incidents are ongoing.

Justice Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi said better co-ordination between departments was needed to prevent delays in processing and repatriation.