The government’s decision to finally convene an urgent meeting with leaders of the March and March movement at the Union Buildings this week suggests the state is beginning to recognise the seriousness of the growing anti-migrant mobilisation sweeping parts of the country.
The problem is that the government may already be dangerously late.
For months, the March and March campaign, led by Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma, has been steadily building momentum through marches in major cities including Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban and KuGompo City.
What initially appeared to be scattered protests around undocumented immigration has changed into a broader movement targeting foreign nationals.
The movement has now spread well beyond metropolitan areas and into smaller towns.
On social media, it is way more aggressive, with anyone raising questions about the legality of the stop-and-searches done by the leaders of the marches being targeted and also branded a foreigner.
Even journalists have not been spared.
That should deeply concern the government.
Because by the time anti-immigrant mobilisation takes root at the community level, it becomes far harder to contain.
We have lived experience in the form of violent 2008 attacks.
The mob mentality which leads to widespread lawlessness is easy to spark.
It was the case in 2021 when, disguised as a protest against the incarceration of former president Jacob Zuma, thousands went on a looting spree.
that anger is increasingly being directed at the wrong people
What starts as protests can quickly mutate into vigilantism, intimidation and outright violence.
The Eastern Cape has already witnessed signs of this escalation.
In KuGompo City, tensions surrounding the widely publicised “Nigerian king” saga became a rallying point for anti-foreigner mobilisation.
The protests turned violent, with property damaged.
That moment should have triggered decisive intervention from political leaders and law enforcement agencies.
Instead, authorities largely appeared to watch from the sidelines while vile rhetoric gained traction online and in communities.
That latest call by March to March for illegal foreign nationals to leave the country by June 30, “or else”, has placed the government in a tight spot.
Now it finds itself confronting a movement that is no longer simply about undocumented immigration.
Increasingly, there are worrying signs of tribalism, ethnic targeting and mob-style politics entering the discourse.
That frustration is real and understandable. But that anger is increasingly being directed at the wrong people.
Foreign nationals did not create SA’s unemployment crisis, nor did they collapse municipalities, loot public funds or allow for the destruction of public infrastructure.
Yet they are becoming convenient scapegoats for frustrations caused primarily by political and economic mismanagement.
And that makes the current moment politically dangerous and the need for South Africans with genuine concerns to be wary and take action.
Daily Dispatch
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.