Overview
- A group of roughly 200–300 mainly women and children who spent two nights outside Durban Central Police Station earlier this week were dispersed by police and moved to the Diakonia centre and the city’s refugee reception facility for processing.
- KwaZulu‑Natal police said officers used ‘minimum legal force’ including teargas and rubber bullets to remove the group after they refused to leave the station, and several people were reported injured during the confrontations.
- Top provincial police and Home Affairs officials held talks with migrant leaders, pledged help for those who can show proof of permit renewal applications, and scheduled follow-up meetings to verify legal status.
- eThekwini’s mayor reported that most people taken to the Moore Road reception centre have now been confirmed as documented and one person was arrested for being in the country illegally, while migrants say many still fear attacks and plan to seek UN support.
- Humanitarian needs are urgent because many migrants report lost businesses, no income, and sick children, and the SAHRC has condemned attacks as a breach of constitutional values as officials vow increased patrols and legal remedies; similar xenophobic flare-ups have recurred in South Africa during past years and ahead of local elections.