Dozens of people joined the march in Durban today, organised by the March and March movement, to call for an end to illegal immigration.
Image: Siphesihle Buthelezi
A coalition of political parties and civic organisations marched through Durban on Wednesday, calling for mass deportations of undocumented migrants and stricter immigration enforcement.
The march, led by March and March, brought together groups including ActionSA, uMkhonto we Sizwe Party (MKP), Patriotic Alliance and the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), with leaders framing illegal immigration as a central driver of unemployment, crime, and economic strain.
March and March leader Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma said the demonstration showed rare political unity around a single issue.
“To us, it is important to see that South Africans can be united amongst different political parties, today the message is clear: we stand in unison and we say we’ve had enough of illegal immigrants,” she said.
Ngobese-Zuma said the turnout demonstrated that “there’s plenty of South Africans who want their voices to be heard”, adding that criticism of the movement would not deter supporters.
“We don’t care if you call us xenophobic, if wanting to be put first is xenophobia, then we will wear that badge with honour,” she said.
She further made allegations against specific foreign national groups, claiming some operated with a sense of entitlement and influence over local systems, and warned that communities would “remind” them “who we are”.
ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba said his party was offering “unconditional support” to the campaign, describing undocumented immigration as a crisis undermining the country.
“This issue of illegal undocumented foreigners has been destroying the soul of our country,” Mashaba said. “We have millions of our own people without jobs, 54% of our people don’t know where their next meal is coming from.”
He criticised the Government of National Unity and the African National Congress (ANC), accusing it of failing to prioritise citizens.
“I don’t understand why government believes South Africa must be a nanny of the world when we are unable to look after our own people,” he said.
Mashaba said migration should be regulated rather than stopped entirely, but insisted enforcement had collapsed.
“We accept that South Africa was built at the back of migrants, but they must come here legally and respect the laws of our country,” he said.
He called for mass deportations of undocumented migrants and the revocation of fraudulently obtained citizenship, citing his tenure as Johannesburg mayor as an early point at which he raised the issue publicly.
“At the time, anyone who raised this issue was told to apologise. I refused,” he said, adding that complaints against him at the South African Human Rights Commission did not succeed.
Mashaba also alleged that international drug syndicates had targeted South Africa and that some businesses were increasingly employing foreign nationals over locals.
IFP eThekwini secretary Joshua Mazibuko said the party’s participation was aligned with its election commitments.
“In our manifesto, we indicated that we would ensure that people who are in this country illegally are rooted out,” he said.
Mazibuko said illegal presence alone constituted sufficient grounds for removal, regardless of criminal activity.
“Even if they were causing no issues, being in the country illegally is an issue on its own,” he said.
He added that the IFP supports limiting foreign employment to scarce skills.
“You can’t cross five boundaries coming to South Africa just to sell a loaf of bread, we will only accept people with peculiar skills,” he said.
Mazibuko also acknowledged that criminal networks involving both foreign nationals and South Africans contribute to issues such as drug trafficking.
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