ANGRY South Africans say they want all Zimbabweans, documented or otherwise, to leave the country as soon as possible or face more xenophobic violence.
This follows the callous murder of a Zimbabwean father of four, Elvis Nyathi, who left his home country six year ago to live and work in South Africa.
On Wednesday night, a mob stormed his dwelling and pulled him from his hideout in Diepsloot, a massive slum settlement north of commercial capital Johannesburg, before stoning and setting him aflame to his gory death.
Speaking during an all stakeholders meeting co-chaired by police minister Bheki Cele and his home affairs counterpart Aaron Motsoaledi Friday, South Africans took turned to blame Zimbabweans as being responsible for all the crimes taking place in the shantytown.
Words were not minced as they demanded that the police’s Special Tactics Response Teams (TRTs) should urgently search, arrest, detention and deport any Zimbabwean.
South Africa Police Services (SAPS) and immigration officers launched an operation targeted at illegal immigrants Friday morning, arresting some and detaining them at the Diepsloot police station for processing.
“South Africans must start walking around with identity cards, our police are failing us we demand the TRT to start a stop, search and arrest operation. They should be allowed to ask who you are, where you are from and for your documentation,†one visibly angry resident said.
“It is not bringing back apartheid, South Africa for South Africans, that is how we want it as residents of Diepsloot. The police should search everyone. A solution will come from South Africans, we do not want Zimbabweans to intervene or assist us in coming up with a solution. We are the solution and we are saying they must leave, they must fokof, that is all. We do not want them to be part of the stakeholders meeting,†the man, sporting an unkempt moustache, said.
He said other people from other countries are not committing crimes.
“We want all Zimbabweans to leave because the ones that are documented are the ones that are bringing the undocumented here. Zimbabweans are killing us, they are entering our houses, our shacks. I reside here and know what I am talking about,†he said.
Nyathi, a gardener, was killed as a result of the ongoing Nhlanhla Dlamini-led Operation Dudula which is calling on residents to remove foreigners from their homes.
His gory end was captured on video and shared on social media.
