March and March slams Ramaphosa's illegal immigration plan as impractical
President Cyril Ramaphosa announced plans to relocate refugee reception centres closer to border posts as part of a broader crackdown.
March and March says government's proposed measures to crack down on illegal immigration fail to address the scale of the crisis.
The civic group has been reacting to the President Cyril Ramaphosa’s address on Sunday night where he announced plans to clamp down on those entering South Africa illegally.
He said the measures include relocating refugee reception centres closer to border posts.
The move follows several anti-illegal immigration protests across the country.
Concerns over implementation
March and March leader, Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma, believes the President needs to go back to the drawing board.
“I don't think the president was properly briefed. I don't think he took time to go to Home Affairs, to go to the borders, to find out the extent of the damage, because the issues that he is raising as solutions are impractical. I can tell you now that some of the things, if not all of what he said, are not going to be implementable.”
Meanwhile, President Cyril Ramaphosa has admitted to shortcomings in the country’s migration management, saying weak enforcement, corruption, and systemic gaps have contributed to declining public confidence in immigration controls.
In his Sunday evening address to the nation, Ramaphosa said South Africans have every right to expect better from the government.
He added that authorities are taking firm steps to address failures in the system.
The president said government has accepted responsibility for these shortcomings and is moving to strengthen the enforcement of immigration laws.
“Government will accordingly take action to address the expectations of our people in dealing with the challenge of the violations of our immigration laws.”
While acknowledging these concerns, he urged citizens not to resort to vigilantism, xenophobia or violence. He says Cabinet last week adopted a Comprehensive Approach for Migration Management, which includes stronger border security, workplace inspections and tougher enforcement of immigration laws.
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