Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba said on Thursday that police and members of the security cluster have been deployed to prevent xenophobic violence in communities around Gauteng. The minister addressed a press briefing following recent attacks against businesses and homes owned by foreign nationals in Pretoria West and Rosettenville.
Gigaba said the flare-ups of violence were linked to criminality. Residents in Rosettenville told the minister that they had attacked property belonging to foreign nationals, believing that they were brothels and drug dens.
The recent spate of violence and looting on foreign-owned businesses in Atteridgeville resulted in the arrests of three people after more than 20 shops were looted.
Gigaba said steps had been taken to increase police visibility to prevent further harm.
“The government is deeply concerned about outbreaks of violence, which may result in the loss of life and/or damage to property. This is why Cabinet has firmly pronounced on this matter and has expressed full support to ourselves and the justice, crime prevention and security cluster to move speedily in resolving these issues to the satisfaction of communities,” Gigaba said.
The minister acknowledged that unemployment and poverty influenced the violence and said that not all of the attacks could be linked to xenophobic sentiment.
The decision to deploy more security officials is not a new response to violent outbreaks on foreign-owned homes and businesses. The ministry began Operation Fiela in April 2015 after xenophobic violence spread from Durban to Johannesburg. It was launched as a campaign against xenophobia during which foreign nationals were stopped and searched for documentation.
Thousands were arrested, but the effectiveness of the campaign in dealing with crime was challenged.
On Thursday, Gigaba defended Operation Fiela, saying it was not a failure. He also said that although xenophobic tensions do exist in South Africa, they had not reached a political level except in “one instance”.
Johannesburg mayor Herman Mashaba has been accused of fuelling xenophobic tensions because of statements he has made linking foreign nationals to criminal behaviour in Johannesburg.
The mayor released a statement on Wednesday condemning xenophobic violence, but Gigaba does not seem wholly convinced that Mashaba had no part in the tensions that are now present. He said he has stressed to Mashaba that the issue of violence against foreign nationals must be dealt with “without the sensationalism that we as politicians may bring to the issue”.
“While I have been critical on the approach, I must commend him for his more measured statement condemning xenophobia. While we have different approaches, I am confident that none of us want to be responsible for any public violence or loss of life,” Gigaba said.
“I hold the view that we can better manage migration in a humane and responsible manner.”
The minister stressed that law and order must be maintained in South Africa and that everyone in the country has a responsibility to abide by South African laws.
An anti-foreigner march, set to take place in Pretoria on Friday, has also been cause for concern.