“We Cannot Leave Here”: Foreign Nationals Refuse to Vacate Diakonia Centre in Durban CBD

• Foreign nationals who were moved from the Durban Central Police Station yesterday have refused to leave the Diakonia Centre in the CBD, where they spent the night
• A spokesperson for the group said they will remain there until their safety is guaranteed
• The group claims they fled their homes due to intimidation and fear linked to anti-immigration tensions

DURBAN - A group of foreign nationals who were moved from the Durban Central Police Station on 19 May 2026 have refused to leave the Diakonia Centre in the Durban CBD, KwaZulu-Natal.

They say they will remain there until their safety is guaranteed.

Group says they are unsafe in their communities

The group, who spent the night at the centre after being dispersed from the police station area, say they do not trust that they will be protected if they return to their communities.

“We cannot leave here. The people want to be assisted because we no longer want the violence and we cannot leave until we are ensured of our safety,” one of the group members said.

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Foreign nationals sleep outside Diakonia Centre in Durban CBD, South Africans urge them to go home

The foreign nationals allege that they were forced to flee their homes following intimidation and threats linked to anti-immigration sentiments and community marches calling for undocumented migrants to leave the country. Some claim they have been living in fear and uncertainty for days, with no secure shelter.

Foreign nationals plead for protection from the police

A spokesperson for the group said they would not return to their previous residences, arguing that their safety concerns were not being adequately addressed.

“If one person is killed, they believe nothing will happen because what happens to them is not being reported,” the spokesperson said.

He added that the group believes there is limited accountability when incidents of violence against them are raised.

The spokesperson further said they were engaging with various stakeholders to secure basic humanitarian support, including food supplies and access to ablution facilities for those camping at the centre.

Refugee organisation says the situation at the centre is dire

Members of the Southern Africa Refugee Organisation Forum say the situation on the ground remains grim.

The organisation says people are sleeping on the floor and they don’t have blankets. A representative said that the displaced individuals feel they have lost a sense of safety in the communities where they previously lived.

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SAPS explains forced removal of immigrants outside Durban Central Police Station

They said they are ready to die for their safety as they fear returning to the communities where they stay.

SAPS explained why they moved the group

Meanwhile, the South African Police Service (SAPS) in KwaZulu-Natal explained why officers removed a large group of foreign nationals who had gathered outside the Durban Central Police Station. SAPS Provincial Spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said the situation escalated after continuous attempts to engage with the group’s leaders failed to yield cooperation, leaving police with no choice but to act in order to restore public order.

Foreign nationals denied criminal involvement

Previously, Briefly News reported that foreign nationals living in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, denied that they were involved in crime as anti-illegal immigration protesters marched in Durban on 6 May 2026. Two foreign nationals, Abubakar Kasim from Kenya and Roger Mulaja from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), said not all foreign nationals are involved in criminal activities. One of them pointed out that no foreign national was mentioned at the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry, which was established to investigate alleged corruption in the criminal justice system.

Source: Briefly News