By Oluwaseun Sonde
South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa has acknowledged that many communities are frustrated by the apparent inability of the police to deal with criminals, while taking additional measures of capacitating the recruitment of 12,000 additional Police officers.
Ramaphosa who made this known on Monday while reacting to the events in the Gauteng township of Diepsloot where seven people were killed, sparking protests, adding that this loss of life is deplorable, as is the killing of a fellow African from Zimbabwe allegedly at the hands of vigilantes.
The President said that there will be re-establishment of community policing forums (CPFs) across the country. "These forums bring communities and police representatives together to improve local safety and hold police accountable.
"Communities need to work with the police by actively participating in CPFs and reporting suspected acts of criminality. Even as we intensify our fight against crime, there is no justification for people taking the law into their own hands", Ramaphosa said.
According to him, "We recognise that illegal migration poses a risk to South Africa’s security, stability and economic progress. Illegal migration affects service delivery and places additional burdens on essential services such as health care and education.
"Like any sovereign nation, we have the right to implement policies and measures that guarantee the integrity of our borders, protect the rights of South Africans and provide that all who reside in our borders have a legal right to be here".
Ramaphosa made it clear that controlling migration is the responsibility of government. "No private citizen may assume the role of immigration or law enforcement authorities by demanding that foreign nationals produce identification.
"Under Section 41 of the Immigration Act, only a police member or immigration officer can ask someone to identify themselves as a citizen, permanent resident or foreign national. If these officers believe, on reasonable grounds, that the person is in the country unlawfully, they may be detained while an investigation into their status is conducted.
"When doing so, law enforcement authorities must respect that person’s rights and dignity. They may not do so in a manner that is degrading or humiliating. Enforcement of migration legislation is a priority for government.
"We are working to ensure that syndicates perpetrating immigration fraud in collusion with corrupt officials are brought to book. This year alone, several people implicated in passport fraud have been arrested", he said.
The President also made it clear that no private citizen or group has the right to enter businesses and demand its owners produce proof that their businesses are registered or legal.
"This is the competence of municipal, provincial or national authorities, including inspectors from the Department of Employment and Labour and the South African Revenue Service.
"Like all other businesses, foreign-owned businesses must obey the relevant laws, including health and safety regulations, have all the required permits and licences, and pay the necessary taxes".
He noted that South Africa is a democracy founded on the rule of law. "Acts of lawlessness directed at foreign nationals, whether they are documented or undocumented, cannot be tolerated. Attacking those we suspect of wrongdoing merely because they are a foreign national is not an act of patriotism.
"It is immoral, racist and criminal. In the end, it will lead to xenophobia, whose consequences we have lived through in previous years. We do not want to go back there because in the main the people of South Africa are not xenophobic.
Ramaphosa appealed to all South Africans, particularly to younger South Africans who thankfully never experienced the true brutality and dehumanisation of apartheid. "Let us not become like the ones who oppressed us, no matter how legitimate the grievance.
"Let us work together to resolve our country’s challenges without resorting to violence or vigilantism. Let us resist those who want to exploit the problems of crime and unemployment for political gain.
"Today, our anger may be directed at nationals from Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Nigeria or Pakistan. Tomorrow, our anger may be directed at each other. Let us focus on defeating crime, no matter who commits it", the President said.
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