Condemned: Xenophobia, mob rule and SA political leaders fuelling anti-migrant hostility

We, the undersigned organisations and individuals, express our deep outrage and condemnation at the recent heavy-handed conduct of state officials in addressing the plight and safety of migrants, including refugees and asylum seekers, alongside the rise of anti-migrant rhetoric fuelling vigilantism in South Africa.

The scenes of law enforcement, in some instances forcibly loading refugees and asylum seekers onto buses under the guise of “verification processes”, are a gross violation of human rights and an affront to the rule of law. These are not criminals. These are human beings – refugees and asylum seekers – who sought the protection of the South African Police Service in KwaZulu-Natal, after being unlawfully displaced and violently targeted by vigilante formations and anti-migrant groups. Instead of receiving protection, dignity and lawful assistance, they were subjected to public humiliation, intimidation, force and the denial of their most basic constitutional rights.

With local government elections on the horizon, it is deeply alarming to witness public representatives intentionally fuelling anti-migrant hostility. We condemn the ruthless exploitation of marginalised migrants for political leverage. Rather than taking accountability for deep-seated governance and economic shortcomings, leaders across the political spectrum are actively scapegoating migrants. Profound national crises – including massive unemployment, collapsing infrastructure and underresourced public services – are being dangerously oversimplified into false and inflammatory claims that predominantly Black African non-citizens are the cause of local hardship.

More context

African ambassadors clarify Africa Day plans amid rising xenophobic tensions

May 25, 2026

South Africa’s Constitution, born from the struggles against apartheid oppression, enshrines the rights to dignity, equality, freedom and security of the person, access to legal representation and protection from arbitrary and degrading treatment. All of which were denied to black people in South Africa under apartheid. Today, it cannot be that these rights are reserved only for citizens. They apply to all who live within our borders. To deny refugees and asylum seekers access to legal representation, to remove them through coercion and fear and to subject them to treatment that echoes the brutality of the apartheid regime, is an affront to the very values for which generations of Black South Africans fought and died.

We categorically reject:

• The growing normalisation of xenophobia, scapegoating and mob rule in our society;
• The criminalisation of African migrants, asylum seekers and refugees;
• The complicity and silence of state institutions when vigilante groups unlawfully and violently evict people from homes, workplaces and spaces of livelihood with impunity; and
• The political campaigns built on the dangerous and unconstitutional premise of “othering” vulnerable populations.

What we are witnessing is the public erosion of constitutional democracy. The rule of law is only applied to the rich and privileged, and this is unconstitutional. At a time when South Africa should stand as a beacon of human rights and pan-African solidarity, fellow Africans are being treated with cruelty, hostility and barbarism while seeking refuge and protection. This is structural and institutionalised xenophobia. This Africa Day, we call on the whole of society to publicly denounce these acts, challenge harmful narratives, and stand in solidarity with humanity.

We call on:

• Politicians and political parties to immediately cease using xenophobic rhetoric as an electoral tool and commit to fact-based, responsible campaigning;
• The media and journalists to promote responsible, fact-based, rights-based public discourse and avoid amplifying divisive and unsubstantiated claims;
• Civil society organisations, faith-based institutions and trade unions to continue the vital work of peacebuilding and community solidarity; and
• Legal practitioners, human rights defenders and social movements to remain vigilant in holding the state accountable to the Constitution.

We further demand:

• An immediate end to the use of force, coercion and intimidation against refugees and asylum seekers by state and non-state actors;
• Full accountability and independent investigations into any unlawful conduct or abuses committed by law enforcement officials;
• Immediate and decisive action against vigilante groups engaged in unlawful evictions, intimidation and xenophobic violence;
• The Electoral Commission of South Africa to strictly monitor and enforce the Electoral Code of Conduct, heavily penalising parties that incite violence or hatred against migrants;
• The reaffirmation by the South African government of its constitutional and international obligations toward refugees, asylum seekers and migrants;
• The full and urgent implementation of the National Action Plan to Combat Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance by the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development and all relevant stakeholders, including the establishment of effective monitoring, early warning and rapid response mechanisms.

Today, as we mark Africa Day, we are called to reflect on the true spirit of pan-African unity and liberation. We cannot authentically celebrate our shared continental identity while simultaneously tearing down and brutalising our fellow Africans. We must stand united, rejecting the artificial divisions sown by xenophobia, and reaffirm our commitment to a continent where the dignity of every person is fiercely protected. History will judge us not by our silence, but by whether we defended the humanity of the most vulnerable among us. An injury to one is an injury to all! DM

Lawyers for Human Rights
Union Against Hunger
Kopanang Africa Against Xenophobia
Consortium for Refugees and migrants in South Africa
Southern Africa Litigation Centre
Wits Law Clinic
The International Labour Research and Information Group
Dr Dale McKinley
Africa Grassroots Healing Initiatives
Centre for Applied Legal Studies
Scalabrini Centre of Cape Town
Zabalaza Pathways Institute… catalysing people’s power for just, loving societies, without poverty…
Ntirhisano Community Centre
GroundWork, Friends of the Earth South Africa
Right2Protest
The Fruit Basket
Media Review Network
Africa Unite
Afesis
Be True to Me
The Auwal Socio-economic Research Institute
Treatment Action Campaign
SECTION27
Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation
Zabalaza for Socialism
Free Basotho Movement
Collective Voices for Health Access
Legal Resources Centre
Amnesty International
The Initiative for Strategic Litigation in Africa
South African Red Cross Society
Socio Economic Rights Institute
Tabitha Paine
Congolese Civil Society of South Africa
African Solidarity Campaign
Palestinian Solidarity Campaign
United Front
Jesuit Refugee Service
Neighbors
Black Sash
Sisonke Revolutionary Movement
Reclaim the City
Claremont Main Road Mosque
Refugee Social Services
Palestine Solidarity Alliance
Kensington Palestine Solidarity Group