Unrest in Mossel Bay, sparked by protests targeting undocumented immigrants, has resulted in the destruction of at least 55 informal structures in the KwaNonqaba area and left dozens of foreign nationals displaced. Local authorities have accommodated approximately 400 displaced individuals in community halls while coordinating with foreign consulates on repatriation efforts.
More than 500 Mozambican nationals have been transported home through collaborative efforts between South African authorities and diplomatic missions. At the time of reporting, an additional 167 individuals were in transit to Mozambique, including 17 children, according to Jacob Tivane, who consulted with the Mozambican embassy regarding the situation.
Tivane, who has been tracking developments on the ground, emphasized that the current crisis reflects deeper, unresolved issues dating back to xenophobic violence in 2008. “It is quite unfortunate that we are still talking about the same problem today,” he stated, noting that while 67 people were killed during the 2008 unrest, seven Mozambican nationals lost their lives in the week preceding the current reporting.
Addressing claims that protests were solely directed at undocumented immigrants, Tivane challenged this narrative. “That’s a lie,” he asserted. “As long as you are a foreigner, South Africans at the moment say, ‘We are tired. We need a fresh start. We don’t need foreigners in South Africa.'” He argued that the root causes lie in unemployment and socio-economic challenges rather than documentation status.
Drawing from personal experience as a foreign national married to a South African citizen for nearly 15 years, Tivane described instances where access to public services, including hospitals, was denied based on nationality rather than legal status. “When I’m stopped, they don’t ask for my documents. They just say, ‘You’re not allowed,'” he recounted.
Repatriation logistics involve transporting displaced individuals from Mossel Bay to Maputo, where consular officials provide assistance before onward travel to respective provinces within Mozambique. However, Tivane cautioned that repatriation alone does not address underlying drivers of migration. “You can send people all you want, but for as long as there’s no food back home, for as long as there are no jobs back home, I can guarantee you, give it two to three months, they will come back again,” he said.
He called on regional leaders within the Southern African Development Community (SADC) to confront structural issues fueling cross-border movement. “Why must someone leave Mozambique, leave their country, to come to South Africa to sell tomatoes and peanuts? It’s because things are not easy back home,” Tivane noted, urging policymakers to prioritize employment creation and economic development over short-term containment measures.
While some reports indicated that certain individuals opted not to proceed with repatriation, authorities continue to facilitate safe return for those seeking to go home. The Mossel Bay Municipality maintains support services for displaced persons awaiting resolution.
Tivane concluded that sustainable solutions require coordinated regional action: “This is becoming an unbelievable crisis. Our leaders must sit down and address what young people are actually looking for: employment, employment, and employment.”
