South Africa's anti‑immigrant rhetoric fuels political tension

Political parties in South Africa have converged on a strategy that uses anger toward African immigrants to win votes, diverting attention from deep structural problems such as a 32.7% unemployment rate and widespread corruption. The anti‑immigrant movement March and March, founded by Jacinta Ngobese‑Zuma, has spread to major cities, has been linked to at least seven deaths, and has issued a deadline for undocumented foreign nationals to leave the country by 30 June. The movement claims to enforce the law, but its statements have been repeatedly refuted.

Academics and historians argue that immigrants in South Africa create businesses, bring skills and expand economic activity, and that the nation’s constitutional values promote inclusion and human dignity. They warn that the current political exploitation of xenophobia undermines those principles and threatens social cohesion.

The debate highlights a broader contradiction in post‑apartheid South Africa: while the Constitution and leaders such as Nelson Mandela and Thabo Mbeki championed pan‑African solidarity, some political actors now portray African migrants as an internal threat to maintain power.