FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Kopanang Africa Against Xenophobia (KAAX) is deeply alarmed by the ongoing humanitarian catastrophe unfolding at the Malawi Consulate in Johannesburg and the continued failure of the South African state to uphold its constitutional and legal obligations to protect all people within its borders.
A Flawed Operation Conducted Without Proper Safeguards
Last night, members of the South African Police Service (SAPS) and Immigration officials conducted an operation at the Malawi Consulate, transporting 1,030 adults and 80 children to the Lindela Repatriation Centre. Two pregnant women were taken to a shelter. Approximately 70 adults and 4 children remain outside the Consulate and have been informed they will be transported to Lindela tomorrow morning.
We acknowledge that KAAX was able to de-escalate the situation and prevent the Public Order Policing unit from using excessive force or displaying unnecessary weapons. However, this does not excuse the fundamental failures of this operation.
A Flagrant Violation of Children’s Rights
Most concerning is the complete absence of the Department of Social Development (DSD) during the night operation. There was no visible presence of DSD to provide support or oversight for the 80 children who were transported. This is a direct violation of the Children’s Act and international protocols which mandate that children in such situations must be handled with appropriate care and oversight. The state cannot simply disappear children into the system without proper social work intervention and support.
The Crisis Is Being Shifted, Not Solved
The situation at the Malawi Consulate is merely one node in a cascading crisis. Hundreds of people continue to arrive from across Gauteng and beyond, having been chased from their homes and communities. Last night, people who had been forced to sleep in a cemetery – fearing for their lives – pitched up at the Malawian embassy seeking safety.
This is not an isolated incident. KAAX has previously highlighted how displaced migrants are being transported from one province to another without adequate planning, protection, accommodation or support. The state’s approach is simply to shift the crisis – from communities where people are attacked and evicted, to whatever location they are dumped, then to Lindela, then to Beit Bridge and the borders. This is not a solution; it is a conveyor belt of suffering that is backing up and creating an even greater humanitarian mess.
Criminal Acts Against Mothers and Infants
This morning, police arrested a Malawian woman with a two-week-old breastfeeding baby because she allegedly did not have papers. The Department of Social Development took her two-week-old breastfeeding baby from her. She has been taken to police custody, and mother and infant have been separated.
This is criminal behaviour. This is against the law. The separation of a breastfeeding infant from its mother is a violation of the Constitution, the Children’s Act, and South Africa’s international obligations. The state is not allowed to do this. We demand the immediate reunification of this mother and child and a full investigation into this unlawful act.
A Call for Responsible Media Coverage
We call on the media to report on what is actually happening on the ground. Too often, coverage sugarcoats the reality and shifts attention away from the root causes. The story is not being told: people are being attacked, evicted, and forced to flee; they are being rounded up in night operations without proper oversight; children are being processed without social workers; and mothers are being separated from their breastfeeding babies.
We need responsible reporting that tells the full story – not just the official narrative, but the reality of what people on the ground are experiencing.
Our Demands
KAAX calls on the South African government to:
1. Immediately ensure the presence of the Department of Social Development in all operations involving children, in compliance with the Children’s Act and international law.
2. Investigate and act against SAPS and Home Affairs officials who conducted the operation without proper child protection protocols.
3. Immediately reunite the Malawian mother with her two-week-old breastfeeding baby and cease the practice of separating infants from their mothers.
4. Cease the practice of shifting the crisis and instead develop a comprehensive, humane, and coordinated response to the displacement of migrants and refugees.
5. Provide adequate shelter, food, healthcare and psychosocial support to all displaced persons, rather than simply transporting them from one location to another without proper planning.
The state cannot continue to ignore its constitutional and legal responsibility to protect every person within South Africa’s borders. How can a government in a democratic dispensation allow this to happen?
Issued by Kopanang Africa Against Xenophobia (KAAX)
