Ramaphosa Warns South Africans Against Violence Ahead Of Protest

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has issued a strong warning against violence and vigilantism ahead of planned anti-immigration protests scheduled for Monday, June 30, while acknowledging that South Africans’ concerns about undocumented immigration are legitimate and deserving of a government response.

In a letter to South Africans, Ramaphosa affirmed the constitutional right to protest but drew a clear line between lawful demonstration and criminal conduct.

“The right to protest and freedom of expression does not allow people to threaten or intimidate others, or to engage in acts of vandalism or violence,” he wrote.

The president said government had accepted that South Africa’s immigration system required substantial reform and was already working to strengthen border management, increase enforcement against undocumented immigration, improve the integrity of the asylum and visa systems and tackle corruption that had weakened immigration controls.

“Where corruption has enabled illegal immigration, those responsible must be held accountable,” he said.

Ramaphosa also issued a direct warning against citizens taking the law into their own hands, invoking the painful history of apartheid-era pass laws.

“We must never allow ourselves to return to that painful chapter of our history where people were stopped on the street, had their physical identities scrutinised, and their right to move freely in the country hindered by suspicion and humiliation,” he said.

“Whatever the motivation, taking the law into one’s own hands is vigilantism and has no place in our constitutional democracy.”

The president acknowledged that some foreign nationals in South Africa are in the country lawfully and are entitled to the protection of the law.

“They work, study, raise families, invest in our economy and contribute positively to our society,” he said.

Ramaphosa said he welcomed assurances from some protest organisers that they stood against violence, but warned they would be held to that commitment.

“No cause, no matter how legitimate, will be an excuse to shift responsibility for violent acts,” he stated.

Nigeria and several African countries, including Ghana and Uganda, have been evacuating their nationals from South Africa in recent weeks amid rising tensions, with an unofficial June 30 deadline set by vigilante groups prompting thousands to register for evacuation flights home.