Professor Loren Landau (African Centre for Migration & Society, Wits University) explains the dynamics behind the ongoing mobilisation:

“South African sentiments are heightened, at migrants and at the issues faced every day: insecurity, joblessness. Local Government Elections are coming up, and migrants are being scapegoated.”

Since 1994, immigration has always been an issue in South Africa, with widespread expressions of disdain. What is different now, Landau notes, is that “national organisations are mobilising that support in political regimes.”

This is not a spontaneous movement, it is a calculated political strategy.

Listen to the conversation:

[Audio Credit: Next Africa]