By: Phakeme Mnguni
March and March founder and leader Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma has urged South Africans to open criminal cases against fellow citizens who are harbouring undocumented immigrants.
Speaking at a media briefing in Umhlanga, north of Durban, Ngobese-Zuma called for the mass deportation of undocumented foreign nationals, arguing that the country is increasingly becoming a hub for human trafficking and other cross-border crimes.
She claimed that communities are bearing the brunt of what she described as weak immigration enforcement and said citizens should play a more active role in reporting individuals who are allegedly assisting undocumented migrants.
Ngobese-Zuma also called on the Constitutional Court to provide clarity on the interpretation of the word “everyone” in the Constitution. She argued that the Bill of Rights should not be understood to apply universally, saying no constitution in the world is intended to apply to every person within a country’s borders.
Section 7 of South Africa’s Constitution states that the Bill of Rights applies to “all people” in the country and guarantees fundamental rights, including equality, dignity and access to courts. Over the years, the Constitutional Court has affirmed that certain rights extend to non-citizens, although some rights, such as the right to vote, are reserved for citizens.
Immigration remains a highly contested issue in South Africa, particularly amid high unemployment levels and ongoing service delivery challenges. Advocacy groups have warned that calls for mass deportations and community-led reporting risk fuelling xenophobia, while supporters of stricter enforcement argue that the rule of law must be upheld.
The government has previously said it is strengthening border management systems and improving cooperation between law enforcement and the Department of Home Affairs to address undocumented migration.
