Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni has warned that there will be no national shutdown linked to anti-illegal immigration protests.
Ntshavheni made the comments during a post-Cabinet briefing on Friday, as pressure grows on government to explain how it plans to deal with the country’s migration challenges.
She said South Africans have the constitutional right to protest, but warned that no one has the right to take the law into their own hands.
“As we have indicated before, there is nobody who’s going to do a shutdown of this country and we must be very clear about that,” Ntshavheni said.
Protests raise fears of violence
The warning comes amid growing protests over illegal immigration.
Hundreds of foreign nationals, including people from Mozambique, have reportedly already left South Africa because of fears of violence and a planned shutdown at the end of June.
Ntshavheni said government recognised the public concern, but made it clear that unlawful action would not be tolerated.
“South Africans have the right to protest and they can march as provided by the Constitution,” she said.
“But South Africans have no right to take the law into their own hands.”
Ramaphosa to outline migration plan
Ntshavheni also said President Cyril Ramaphosa would soon address the nation on government’s new plan to manage migration.
She did not announce a date for the address.
According to Ntshavheni, government is currently working on the immigration challenges and will release further details when Ramaphosa speaks.
The planned address comes as Cabinet faces mounting public pressure over undocumented migration, border control and the impact of migration on communities.
Government under pressure
The illegal immigration debate has intensified in recent weeks, with marches and protest action placing affected communities and foreign nationals on edge.
Ntshavheni said government was again being forced to explain what it was doing to address the issue.
Her message was firm: people may protest, but they may not intimidate others or shut down the country.
The latest comments signal that government is preparing a stronger public response to the migration crisis, while also trying to prevent violence linked to the planned end-of-June protests.