“Hypocrites Are Silent”: Mzansi Reacts as African Migrants Flee Kenya Over Xenophobia Claims
- Kenya’s President William Ruto ordered a crackdown on foreigners operating small businesses, triggering panic among African immigrants
- Hundreds of Burundians queued outside their embassy in Nairobi clutching documents, with suitcases piling up as they prepared to leave
- South Africans online pointed out the double standard, noting the story received far less outrage than similar incidents in SA
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Hundreds of African migrants are reportedly scrambling to leave Kenya after President William Ruto ordered foreign nationals out of the country’s small-business sector. According to a report by the BBC, Ruto made the announcement at State House in Nairobi last Wednesday, telling small-scale traders that all foreign vendors operating in that space should shut down.
“From next week, all [foreign] traders doing those small businesses should close them,” Ruto said, adding that Kenya remained open to foreign investment but that investors should create jobs rather than compete with locals in the informal economy.
Burundians among the hardest hit
According to a report by eNCA, the directive hit Burundians particularly hard. Crowds gathered outside the Burundian Embassy in Nairobi, clutching large brown envelopes and waiting for hours to secure travel documents. Suitcases and plastic bags piled up at the compound as families prepared to return home.
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“They’ve expelled us like animals,” Pastor Jean-Baptiste Ndayizeye told AFP. He drew a direct comparison with South Africa, saying what Kenyans were doing to foreigners was no different.
Burundi’s foreign minister Edouard Bizimana reportedly condemned the violence, writing on X that “Kenya government is responsible for the lives of Burundians living in Kenya.”
Kenya’s junior foreign minister Korir Sing’Oei later visited the embassy, apologised to Burundians and said the president’s remarks had been “misunderstood.” Government spokesperson Charles Owino said authorities had opened a formal documentation and registration window for affected East African nationals.
According to the BBC, Kenya hosts roughly 857,000 registered refugees and asylum seekers, with nearly 14% living in urban areas.
Watch a report on migrants fleeing Kenya by DW Africa below:
Mzansi calls out the double standard
South Africans online were quick to notice the muted global reaction compared to the uproar that typically follows similar incidents in South Africa:
@aykay161 wrote:
“Hypocrites are all silent because it’s not South Africa doing it.”
@Casual Observer said:
“That’s xenophobic? 😹 Or is that a word we reserve for South Africa?”
@South African Pride added:
“If it were South Africa, the internet would be booming right now. 🤣”
@lehanatsoanyane wrote:
“Where is Prof Lumumba? He is Kenyan.”
@Senzo.M added:
“Other countries are so lucky to not have EFF.”
@Mthunzi jnr said:
“We stand with Kenya through this.”
More stories involving Kenya
- Briefly News previously reported that tensions were rising in Nakuru City, Kenya, where youngsters were filmed forcibly removing foreign traders.
- South Africa jumped 10 places in the 2026 IMD World Competitiveness Ranking to stay 54th globally.
- South Africans slammed the Kenyan High Commission in Pretoria, Gauteng, after it issued an advisory warning its citizens on 4 May 2026.
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Source: Briefly News
