Foreign National Tries To Resist When City of Johannesburg Demolishes Illegal Structure

• Johannesburg Metro Police Department officers forcefully removed a resisting foreign national during a demolition at Marble Towers on 15 July
• Mayor Dada Morero shared footage of the operation, which targeted illegal structures in central Johannesburg's CBD
• South Africans welcomed the crackdown, though some questioned how the structures were allowed to grow unchecked

JOHANNESBURG — Members of the Johannesburg Metro Police Department (JMPD) were filmed forcefully removing a resisting foreign national during a demolition operation targeting illegal structures at Marble Towers in central Johannesburg on 15 July.

Footage shared on Facebook by Johannesburg Mayor Dada Morero showed officers physically removing the individual as well as JMPD members tearing down a number of the structures on the site. The operation forms part of the City of Johannesburg's ongoing efforts to reclaim and restore its central business district. Recently, suspected undocumented foreign nationals fled a compliance raid.

Marble towers cleared of illegal structures

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The Marble Towers building has been at the centre of the city's clean-up drive in recent weeks, with authorities moving to dismantle unauthorised occupation and trading structures that had taken hold in the area. The demolition operation drew significant public attention after Morero posted the video online, where it attracted hundreds of comments.

See the video shared by Mayor Morero here:

**South Africans react to the crackdown

The operation drew broad public support, though some commenters raised pointed questions about how the situation had been allowed to develop in the first place.

Fierosa Rajah wrote:

"To the Johannesburg authorities: Please continue the important work of cleaning and restoring our city. Johannesburg has been neglected for far too long, and it will require sustained commitment, proper planning, and significant investment to bring Egoli back to the standard it was known for in the 1980s."

Mamokete Lebenya commented:

"Thank you so much, guys. We will definitely have our country in order."

Don Laka questioned the legal status of those affected, asking:

"Are they legal and documented? Do they have a license to run those businesses?"

Kobus Herbst directed criticism at the city itself:

"The big big question is: how did the City of JHB even allow these structures to mushroom to this level?"

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Busisiwe Charmain Yende was unequivocal in her support, writing:

"It's long overdue. Why do people want to talk as if what is done there is legal? Even when they do it, they know it's illegal, but it's done openly."

Thousands of foreign nationals arrested in crackdown

In a related article, Briefly News reported on the recent immigration crackdown by the South African Police Service, which resulted in the arrests of 8,896 foreign nationals in just 14 days. This operation underscores the government's enforcement efforts against illegal immigration and associated crimes across the nation.

Source: Briefly News