Ahead of the planned nationwide June 30 protests against illegal immigration, Amnesty International South Africa has accused government of inflaming tensions between South Africans and other African citizens residing in the country.

The human rights organisation said there is a need for broader systemic reform to ensure that migrants are lawfully documented and processed to live in South Africa.

“In persisting with a broken system that leaves those trying to claim asylum undocumented and in limbo, some for up to 19 years, the government is causing a divide and inflaming tensions between South African citizens and fellow Africans living in the country,” the organisation stated.

Amnesty International South Africa executive director Shenilla Mohamed warned against using asylum seekers, refugees and migrants as excuses for unemployment, inequality and an overburdened public service, calling it wrong and dangerous.

“It distracts from the State’s responsibility to deliver for all who live in South Africa and address the root causes. Violence and vigilantism will never fix these problems, they only destroy lives and deepen division,” she added.

Thousands of African migrants began the process of leaving South Africa for their various home countries as protest group March and March proceeds with plans for nationwide protests on Tuesday: the organisation’s unofficial deadline for undocumented persons to leave the country.

Fears of vandalism and violence, reminiscent of the 2008 xenophobic violence and the 2021 unrest in KwaZulu-Natal, have put South Africans and migrants on tenterhooks ahead of Tuesday.

Mohamed said while Amnesty International supports South Africans’ right to protest, it must be done without violence or intimidation, warning against vigilantism and citizens taking the enforcement of immigration laws into their own hands.

“History has shown us where this path leads and how quickly things can turn deadly. Anyone taking the law into their own hands is breaking it. Impunity for xenophobic crimes has contributed to the continued discriminatory rhetoric and violence. The violation of people’s rights to safety, security, dignity and life must not be allowed to continue,” she cautioned.