African Migrants Urged to Close Businesses, Keep a Low Profile Amid Anti-illegal Immigration Marches
- Ghanaians and Nigerians were advised to remain indoors and close their shops in Gauteng amid anti-illegal immigration marches
- March and March, backed by civil society organisations and some political parties, have held demonstrations in several provinces
- Social media users took issue with a report by the BBC, which framed the marches as demonstrations against all migrants in South Africa
Source: Facebook
Byron Pillay, a Briefly News journalist, has dedicated a decade to reporting on the South African political landscape, crime, and social issues. He worked as a newspaper journalist for 10 years before transitioning to online.
GAUTENG – African migrants in South Africa have been urged to exercise ‘heightened vigilance’ amid fears of xenophobic attacks during marches in Pretoria and Johannesburg.
March and March, backed by civil society organisations and some political parties, held an anti-illegal immigration march in Pretoria on Tuesday, 29 April 2026, and will now turn its attention to Johannesburg.
The movement brought the Pretoria Central Business District (CBD) to a standstill as it voiced concerns about undocumented foreign nationals in the country and the soaring unemployment, and aims to do the same in the Johannesburg CBD on Wednesday, 29 April 2026.
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Ghana and Nigeria are concerned about citizens in South Africa
While the first march is done and dusted, Ghanaians and Nigerians in the country are advised to keep a low profile ahead of the continued action by March and March.
Ghana's High Commission urged its nationals to shut up shop during the march and a ‘low profile’, while the Head of the Nigerian Union of South Africa told members to remain indoors.
Chairman of the Nigerian Union in South Africa, Olaniyi Abodedele, also advised members of his community to close their shops and remain indoors.
"We are all very careful. We are in the dark because we don't know how our government [in Nigeria] is going to react if any of us is affected or is killed," he told the BBC.
Source: Facebook
Protests draw the attention of the United Nations
The warnings come as March and March has held several demonstrations across the country, forcing foreign nationals to shut up shop and even apprehending those whom they believed were in the country illegally.
In KwaZulu-Natal, some foreigners were even taken to the police station under suspicion of being in the country illegally, with demonstrators demanding that they be deported.
Some of their shops remain closed since the demonstrations over fears that they could be targeted again. There have even been attacks on foreign nationals, which have drawn the attention of the United Nations as well.
While the march in Pretoria was incident-free, officials are on alert in Johannesburg ahead of the upcoming demonstrations.
Social media users weigh in on BBC’s report
With the BBC reporting on what it described as an anti-migrant march, social media users were quick to clarify that the demonstrations were against illegal immigrants alone.
@azania1023 said:
“South Africa is a peaceful nation. The anti-illegal migrants marches are held across the country, but no violence has been reported. The call is simple and clear; all those who are in the country illegally must go back to their own countries.”
@nozi03 noted:
“Correction, illegal immigrants. Those are the people we have issues with. We don't want them in our country.”
@Thulayanda1 stated:
“We are tired of these people. All Africans must stay in their country of origin.”
@Sihle_Donda said:
“Thank you for your attention to this matter. Our ‘Ubuntu’ is suspended until further notice. We kindly request people to remain in their countries and fight their governments instead of flocking here.”
@mark_boikanyo explained:
“The march is not anti-migrant. It is purely about anti-illegal immigration. South African resources are currently depleted due to the influx of undocumented foreign nationals who are untraceable when committing crimes within our communities.”
@Mbatha_Dumi agreed:
“It’s not an anti-migrant march but an anti-illegal immigration march.”
@x747mt stated:
“Yes, we need to kick the illegal aliens out and secure our borders.”
Other stories about foreign nationals in South Africa
Briefly News has covered several stories about foreign nationals in South Africa, with views mixed about the situation.
- ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba pushed for undocumented migrants to return to their home countries.
- A South African woman living in Ghana spoke out against xenophobia, saying it should not be confused with patriotism.
- Ethiopian nationals in Johannesburg expressed fear that they were being targeted by a criminal syndicate.
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Source: Briefly News
