Ramaphosa sends a warning to South Africa’s neighbours
President Cyril Ramaphosa has warned that unmanaged migration poses a growing risk to the stability of South Africa and the rest of the continent.
He said South Africa and its neighbours need to work together to tackle the root causes driving people to leave their home countries.
This was his message at the First Ordinary Session of the Seventh Legislature of the Pan-African Parliament in Midrand on Monday, 27 July.
Ramaphosa said migration had become one of the key issues that Africa must confront if it hopes to achieve greater unity and integration.
“We have seen how unmanaged migration can undermine the sovereignty, security and social order of countries,” the president said.
Ramaphosa’s comments come as South Africa continues to grapple with heated public debate over illegal immigration, border security and pressure on public services.
He acknowledged that migration remained a sensitive issue across the continent, including in South Africa. “Today, many parts of our continent are confronted by the challenge of migration,” he said.
“Here in South Africa, as has been the experience of other countries, we have witnessed outbreaks of anti-migrant sentiment and incidents of intimidation and violence directed at foreign nationals.”
He said these incidents had been fuelled partly by “misinformation and prejudice”, but also reflected “a genuine concern among some South Africans about the social and economic burden of illegal migration.”
Ramaphosa stressed that South Africa rejects violence and vigilantism directed at foreign nationals and said the government remains committed to enforcing immigration laws while protecting people’s rights.
“As the South African government, we have taken a firm stance against any form of intimidation, vigilantism or violence directed at foreign nationals,” he said.
“We have taken steps to strengthen and enforce our laws, to defuse tension and to ensure that all persons within our borders respect the rights of all.”
The president also warned against treating all migrants as though they were in the country unlawfully.
Stronger cooperation between African countries
He said there is an important distinction between legal migrants, refugees, asylum seekers and those who violate immigration laws.
“We must not conflate lawful migrants, refugees and asylum seekers with people who enter or remain in countries in violation of immigration laws,” Ramaphosa said.
He added that migrants should not become convenient targets for broader social and economic frustrations.
“Nor should migrants be made scapegoats for unemployment, crime or shortcomings in the delivery of public services,” he said.
Ramaphosa argued that governments should adopt what he described as firm, fair and effective immigration management, while upholding human dignity and the rule of law.
“Our task is to ensure that migration is managed in a manner that affirms the rights and dignity of all people, that respects international conventions, and that advances social cohesion,” he said.
While calling for stronger immigration management, Ramaphosa directed much of his message at African governments, and said migration cannot be solved through border controls alone.
He argued that countries across the continent must work together to address the conditions that force people to leave their homes.
“As African countries, we have to acknowledge and address the conditions that drive migration in the first place,” he said.
“We need to work together to address issues like conflict, instability, governance failure, poverty and social discord. We need to create equal economic opportunity across Africa.”
He added that African leaders must work for a future where Africans migrate out of choice and not necessity.
Ramaphosa said achieving that goal will require stronger cooperation between African countries, greater economic development, improved governance and continued efforts to promote peace and stability across the continent.
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