Hundreds of Soweto residents gathered near the Jabulani Amphitheatre on Monday, June 29, to protest against the presence of undocumented foreign nationals.

The protest was held ahead of a planned public demonstration scheduled for Tuesday, June 30.

Led by Amabutho and Nkosikhona Ndabandaba, known as Phakel’ uMthakathi, the group delivered a national memorandum to the Protea North Police Station. The memorandum is expected to be read in all nine provinces.

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Members of the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department (JMPD) and the South African Police Service (SAPS) monitored the demonstration to ensure safety and maintain order.

Speaking to the crowd, Indumo from the Jabulani Hostel, Sehluko Dladla, said the protest was intended to assist the government, which he claimed had been slow to act despite evidence suggesting that some people were living in the country without valid documentation.

Dladla criticised the government for allocating R600 million to strengthen security measures ahead of the June 30 anti-immigration protest.

“Our government has allocated so much money, but my question is: if nothing happens tomorrow, what will happen to the R600 million?”

“Rather than allocating the money for the protest, why doesn’t the government use it to fix our borders because they are not properly secured?

“The funds should be directed towards more important priorities,” he said.

Induna from Dobsonville, Hloniphisa Chonco, said the gathering was intended to show the government that residents were tired of the presence of undocumented foreign nationals.

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Chonco said many educated South Africans remained unemployed because of undocumented foreign nationals, claiming that some foreign nationals in the country did not want to leave.

“We, as South Africans, have had enough.”

“All we want is for the government to take these people back to their countries because they are their people.”

“Our children have turned to drugs because of our government and these undocumented foreign nationals, so they must go back to where they come from,” he said.

He added that no one would be harmed during the demonstration, but warned that if no action was taken, they would continue protesting until the government responded.

Phakel’ uMthakathi emphasised that there would be no violence or looting during the demonstration scheduled for Tuesday, June 30.

Deputy Provincial Commissioner Major General Fred Kekana accepted the memorandum and undertook to consider all the concerns raised in the document, working with the relevant government entities mentioned in the memorandum.