President Peter Mutharika returned home yesterday from a private visit to South Africa with a reassuring statement to Malawians fleeing anti-immigrant attacks that government will give them resettlement support.
The President’s assurance, as expressed through a statement from the State House Press Office, comes at a time about 5 000 Malawians and other foreign nationals residing in South Africa face uncertainty today, the deadline for their departure as set by anti-immigrant vigilante groups.
Mutharika said his administration will continue engaging the South African government to find solutions and help Malawians currently facing xenophobic attacks in that country.
He said: “While in South Africa, I had a series of meetings with my brother, President Cyril Ramaphosa, as the June 30 deadline is not the end of everything. We have Malawians who own houses, families and businesses in South Africa; hence, the need for us to find a solution on how to help them.”
Mutharika also said his administration will introduce measures to financially support all returnees.
“I would like to assure all returnees that the government will take care of them. We will help them settle and integrate into the community. They must feel at home, even though some have lived abroad for a long time,” he said.
In separate interviews yesterday, some of the displaced Malawians, who asked not to be identified, said they are worried about today ‘s demonstrations considering how volatile the situation turned out in recent weeks.
Some of the displaced Malawians who are not in repatriation camps said their
employers fired them due to pressure from vigilante groups.
“I have been told to stop going to work, but I will wait to see what will happen today,” said one of them.
The South African government has moved the repatriation camp from
ultimatum as “not a government pronouncement”, assuring that authorities “will not allow any instability”.
Department o f Disaster Management Affairs Commissioner Wilson Moleni told The Nation on Sunday that about 15 000 Malawians had been brought back home by then.
However, we could not obtain the latest figures yesterday because his phone went unanswered.
Meanwhile, security has been heightened as South Africa authorities prepare for the planned demonstrations ahead of the deadline set by anti-illegal migration groups.
Malawians are among foreign nationals displaced by ant i-immigrant attacks in South Africa that have intensified in recent weeks following accusations by some South African groups, namely March and March and Operation Dudula, that immigrants, especially the undocumented, are stealing jobs for locals.
Durban Drive-In in KwaZulu Natal Province to Musina in Limpopo Province to facilitate faster and more efficient repatriation through the BeitBridge Border Post.
South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) reported yesterday that authorities were racing against time to relocate Malawians before today’s demonstrations.
On the other hand, News24 of South Africa also quoted the eThekwini Municipality as having stated in a statement: “This decision follows a resolution of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Migration as part of the government’s coordinated response to managing irregular migration and expediting voluntary repatriation.”
Ramaphosa has urged citizens planning to participate in anti-illegal immigration protests today to do so peacefully and within the confines of the law, warning against violence, intimidation and vigilantism.
In a statement issued yesterday, he said : “It is a credit to our robust democratic order that people are able to express their grievances openly. But 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.”
In an earlier statement, South Africa’s Government Communication an d Information System chief director William Baloyi di smissed the June 30
