President Cyril Ramaphosa has warned South Africans not to allow concerns over illegal immigration to lead to prejudice and hatred toward other African nationals.
Ramaphosa was delivering his Freedom Day address at Dr Rantlai Molemela Stadium in Bloemfontein.
His comments come after a wave of protests against illegal foreigners in parts of the country, some of which turned violent.
He acknowledged South Africa and many other countries have concerns about illegal immigration, but warned against allowing those concerns to give rise to hatred directed toward people from other African countries.
“We should never allow the legitimate concerns of our communities about illegal migration to breed prejudice and hatred towards our fellow Africans,” Ramaphosa said.
“We must not allow these concerns to give rise to xenophobia directed towards people from other African countries or any other parts of the world. We are South Africans. We cannot be driven by hatred towards others.”
Ramaphosa highlighted the support African countries gave South Africa during apartheid, calling for Ubuntu.
“They gave us support and compassion, and we cannot be driven by hatred towards them.
“We did not walk alone into freedom. We were carried by a tide of solidarity from the nations of Africa, among many others. These countries opened their borders to our liberation fighters. They shared their bread and their homes. They spoke for us when we could not speak for ourselves. The leaders and people of Africa kept our struggle alive.”
The president called on South Africans to allow the law to take its course in clamping down on illegal migration, highlighting steps the government is taking to deal with the issue.
“Let us allow our laws to take their course. We have already set in place the way in which we’ll be able to deal with those who are in our country illegally.
“We are clamping down on illegal migration and on businesses that flout our laws by hiring undocumented persons at the expense of our citizens. We are actively rooting out corruption in our immigration system. We will not allow people to take the law into their own hands.”
Ramaphosa urged those who are in South Africa legally to respect South Africans, their laws and their traditions.
“We extend hospitality to those who are guests in our country with the expectation that generosity is honoured with respect for our society and its laws. As a nation that defeated colonialism and apartheid through international solidarity, we carry a responsibility to advance constitutional values beyond our borders. We remain committed to multilateralism, respect for international law and principled diplomacy.”
TimesLIVE
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