Paul NjiéAnd
Joseph Winter
KIM LUDBROOK/EPA/Shutterstock
Nigeria is considering repatriating its nationals to South Africa who want to return home voluntarily, amid growing fears of an escalation in recent attacks on foreigners.
Foreign Affairs Minister Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu said 130 candidates had already registered for the exercise, adding that the number was expected to increase.
She expressed President Bola Tinubu’s concern over attacks in the southern African country and condemned violence against foreign nationals and protests characterized by “xenophobic rhetoric, hate speech and inflammatory anti-migrant statements.”
Nigeria has summoned South Africa’s acting high commissioner over the matter.
Nigeria will formally register its “deep concern” at a meeting next Monday over the incidents in South Africa, saying they could affect existing relations between the countries. according to a press release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The meeting will focus on recent protests by anti-immigrant groups and “documented cases of mistreatment of Nigerian citizens and attacks on their businesses,” the statement said.
On Sunday, Nigeria’s foreign minister said: “Nigerian lives and businesses in South Africa must not continue to be put at risk, and we remain committed to working with South Africa to explore ways to end this situation.” »
She cited the killing of two Nigerians in separate incidents involving members of local security forces, insisting her government was seeking justice.
She said the Nigerian president’s priority was the security of citizens and “therefore, arrangements are currently underway to gather information on Nigerians in South Africa for voluntary repatriation flights for those seeking assistance to return home.”
Four Ethiopian nationals have also been killed in recent weeks, local media reported, while attacks have taken place against citizens of other African countries.
As the most industrialized country in Africa, people from the continent have long traveled to South Africa to look for work.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa condemned the attacks but also urged foreigners to respect local laws.
He used his speech last week on Freedom Day – marking the country’s first democratic elections in 1994 – to remind South Africans of the support other African countries had given in the fight against the racist apartheid system.
But some South Africans accuse foreigners of residing illegally in the country, taking jobs away from locals and having links to crime, including drug trafficking.
Anti-immigrant groups have stopped people outside hospitals and schools to demand to see their identification papers.
At the time, a Nigerian man told BBC Pidgin: “It’s not right because we’re black, we’re brothers… everyone comes here just to survive.”
A security guard, who was unable to go to work due to the protest, told the BBC: “This is not what we expected as fellow Africans.”
“It just scares us – imagine if we are scared on our own African continent – what if we go to Europe?” he asked.
Anti-immigration sentiment rose earlier this year after reports that the leader of the Nigerian community in the port town of KuGompo (formerly East London) had been installed in a traditional role that can be translated as “king”. Some South Africans in the region saw it as an attempt to seize political power.
South Africa is home to around 2.4 million migrants, or just under 4% of the population, according to official figures. However, many others are believed to be in the country unofficially.
Most come from neighboring countries like Lesotho, Zimbabwe and Mozambique, which have a history of supplying migrant labor to their wealthy neighbor. A smaller number come from Nigeria.
Additional reporting by Khanyisile Ngcobo in Johannesburg
You might also be interested in:
Getty Images/BBC
