The Southern Africa Migration Network (SAMIN) expresses deep concern and condemnation
over the alarming escalation of anti-migrant sentiment and Afrophobic violence in South Africa.
In recent weeks, thousands of South Africans have protested in major cities demanding the
mass deportation of undocumented foreign nationals, while vigilante groups have been filmed
harassing and intimidating African migrants. Disturbingly, this wave of hostility has now spread
to schools, where children have been recorded joining protests and chanting anti-migrant
slogans, a sign of how deeply Afrophobia is being normalised.
Videos circulating on social media have ignited continental outrage and a diplomatic crisis. A
number of African nations have raised formal concerns, issued citizen advisories, or begun
repatriation preparations. This is now a continental crisis, not a domestic South African matter.
SAMIN is troubled by the South African government’s response. Rather than unequivocally
confronting the Afrophobia that is visibly unfolding, official spokespersons have dismissed viral
footage of attacks and harassment as “fake videos and images,” and claimed that there are
“no xenophobic attacks in South Africa.” While President Ramaphosa and Foreign Minister
Lamola have rightly affirmed that no grievance justifies violence, the overall government
posture has been more defensive of South Africa’s international image than protective of the
people within its borders. Denying the reality of Afrophobia does not make it disappear. It
emboldens perpetrators and silences victims.
Compounding this crisis is the Department of Home Affairs’ deliberate closure of
documentation pathways, particularly for African nationals. Over the past several years, the
department has progressively narrowed legal avenues for asylum, work, and residence,
suspending temporary permits, restricting visa categories, and creating a backlog of hundreds
of thousands of unprocessed applications. “This is not administrative failure alone; it is a policy
choice that has systematically closed the space for African migrants to regularise their stay,”
said Rev Melton Luhanga, Chair of SAMIN. “Most people are rendered ‘undocumented’ not
because they refused to follow the law, but because the law has been made unavailable to
them,” Rev Luhanga added. The overwhelming majority of those caught in this trap are from
other African countries.
SAMIN does not dismiss the genuine hardship that underlies public frustration. According to
Statistics South Africa’s most recent Quarterly Labour Force Survey, the official
unemployment rate stands at 32.7%, with youth unemployment among those aged 15 to 24
at 60.9%, and the expanded unemployment rate reaching 42.1%, South Africa is under
immense strain. Years of state capture, entrenched corruption, and the collapse of service
delivery have hollowed out the institutions meant to serve ordinary people. The frustration
many South Africans feel is real and legitimate. However, that suffering was not caused by
migrants. It was caused by misgovernance and the systematic plunder of the state. What we
are witnessing is a deliberate scapegoating of African migrants, a phenomenon that must be
named for what it is: Afrophobia. Political actors and anti-immigration movements have
redirected legitimate public anger toward the most vulnerable, amplified by disinformation on
social media and by parties building electoral campaigns on anti-immigration platforms. The
fact that schoolchildren are now being drawn into these protests shows how deep this poison
has seeped. Criminalizing migrants does not create a single job, restore a single service, or
hold a single corrupt official to account.
What is also erased from public debate is the positive contribution of migrants. Far from being
a drain, African migrants in South Africa run small businesses, pay taxes, fill critical skills gaps,
and, crucially, create employment for South Africans. To blame migrants for unemployment
while ignoring their role as job creators is not only false; it is a deliberate distortion that fuels
Afrophobia.
The spirit of Pan-Africanism and the solidarity that sustained the anti-apartheid struggle are
being betrayed by acts of Afrophobia against the very people whose nations stood with South
Africa in its darkest hour. With the SADC Heads of State and Government Summit
approaching in August 2026, SAMIN calls on member states to place the protection of
migrants, the combating of Afrophobia, and the upholding of regional integration principles
firmly on the Summit’s agenda. South Africa, as a leading SADC member and with President
Cyril Ramaphosa as interim SADC Chair, has a particular obligation to demonstrate through
concrete action, not just diplomatic statements, that it is committed to these values. SADC
must send a clear message: Afrophobia is incompatible with African solidarity.
SAMIN therefore calls on:
- The South African government to take decisive, visible action to protect migrants and
foreign nationals, including prosecuting those engaged in harassment and violence,
and deploying law enforcement in affected communities; - The Department of Home Affairs to immediately reverse its policy of closing
documentation pathways for African nationals, to reopen access to visa, asylum, and
permit systems, clear the backlog transparently, and ensure that no person is left
undocumented because the law has been made unavailable to them. The answer to
undocumented migration is not harassment and violence; it is a functional, accessible,
and humane documentation system. No human being is illegal; - Political leaders and parties to immediately cease using anti-immigration rhetoric for
electoral gain and to actively counter the disinformation fuelling Afrophobia; - The South African Human Rights Commission and oversight bodies to independently
investigate reported violations and ensure victims have access to justice, regardless
of documentation status; - Civil society and media to invest in public education and awareness campaigns that
counter Afrophobic narratives; - SADC Heads of State to place the Afrophobia crisis and the protection of migrants on
the agenda of the August 2026 Summit, and to adopt concrete regional commitments
as an outcome.
SAMIN stands firmly on the side of human dignity, the rule of law, and the unity of our
continent. We urge all leaders, in South Africa and across the region, to choose solidarity over
scapegoating and to act with the urgency this moment demands.
Issued by:
The Southern Africa Migration Network (SAMIN)
secretariat@samin.org.za | www.samin.org.za
Date: 02 June 2026
Cell: Secretariat +27846875946 ; +27836872282
PDF Link: https://samin.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/SAMIN_Statement_Afrophobia-crisis_-June-2026.pdf
PDF Link: https://samin.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Deiclaration-SAMIN-2-juin-2026.pdf