uMngeni Municipality Mayor Pappas calls for engagement with Lesotho High Commissioner on undocumented immigration

uMngeni Municipality in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands has called for an engagement with the High Commissioner of Lesotho to address the challenges of undocumented immigrants from that nation who are living in the town.

In a statement, the municipality said it is concerned about possible exploitation of those immigrants due to their undocumented status. It is understood that uMngeni has a large number of people from Lesotho living in the area. 

In a statement, the Municipality said it has formally reached out to the High Commission of the Kingdom of Lesotho to request cooperation in addressing matters relating to undocumented Lesotho nationals residing and working within the municipal area.

“Mayor Christopher Pappas has written to Her Excellency the High Commissioner to raise concerns identified through engagements with law-enforcement partners, community structures, and municipal social-development platforms, including the Local AIDS Council, the Gender-Based Violence (GBV) Forum, and the Local Drug Action Committee.

It said these engagements highlighted a significant number of individuals believed to be living and working in the municipality without the required immigration and labour documentation.

 According to reports tabled at these platforms, challenges raised include:

• The presence of undocumented individuals working illegally and vulnerable to exploitation.
• Non-participation in local public-health and HIV/AIDS programmes, which affects prevention and treatment efforts.
• A minority of individuals allegedly involved in the illicit drug trade and related social-harm issues, including incidents involving child abandonment.

Mayor Pappas emphasised that the concerns are focused on lawful compliance, public health, social stability, and community safety, and not on nationality or discrimination.

“uMngeni is a welcoming community that values regional cooperation and lawful migration. Many Basotho residents contribute positively to our economy and local life. However, we must address legitimate safety, health, and social-welfare concerns raised by our stakeholders.

“Our intention is to work collaboratively with the Kingdom of Lesotho to ensure that all residents – whether South African or foreign – are safe, protected, and participating lawfully in our society,”  he said. 

The letter requests support from the High Commission in:

• Encouraging and facilitating legal documentation and compliance.
• Strengthening cooperation on public-health participation, particularly HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment.
• Supporting joint approaches to tackling crime and social-harm issues involving undocumented individuals.

Mayor Pappas added: “This is a matter requiring partnership, not blame. We believe the best outcomes come from constructive engagement between governments and communities. We remain committed to protecting vulnerable people from exploitation, safeguarding public health, and ensuring lawfulness and dignity for all residents.”

The Municipality has offered to meet with the High Commission to establish a cooperative action framework.

THE MERCURY