Uganda Repatriates Second Batch Of Citizens From South Africa

A second batch of Ugandan nationals is expected to arrive at Entebbe International Airport on Friday evening as the Ugandan government presses on with its voluntary repatriation exercise for citizens returning from South Africa, the Uganda High Commission in Pretoria announced.

The announcement follows the arrival early on Friday of 273 Ugandans who formed the first batch of returnees, touching down at Entebbe at about 2:00 a.m. aboard an Uganda Airlines charter flight.

They were received by Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs Haruna Kyeyune Kasolo and Uganda’s Ambassador to South Africa Paul Amoru, who accompanied them on the flight.

The repatriation was ordered by President Yoweri Museveni, who directed that the Ugandan government bear all costs associated with the operation.

The exercise is being coordinated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in collaboration with the Office of the Prime Minister, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Ministry of Works and Transport, and the Uganda High Commission in Pretoria.

More than 800 Ugandans have registered for voluntary repatriation, with that figure having risen from an initial 700 to approximately 1,200 as fears mounted among Ugandan nationals in South Africa.

Additional charter flights are expected in the coming days.

The evacuation was triggered by a fresh wave of anti-migrant protests and xenophobic violence across South Africa, during which anti-immigration groups issued a 30 June deadline for undocumented foreigners to leave the country.

One Ugandan national, identified as Wilber Niwamanya, was killed in an attack in KwaZulu-Natal Province.

The High Commission has written formally to South African authorities demanding investigation and prosecution of those responsible.

Uganda joins Nigeria, Ghana, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia, and Namibia among African countries that have activated emergency repatriation programmes for their citizens.