- Acting National Police Commissioner Puleng Dimpane said security forces deployed overnight remain in place, with police on the ground since 6am.
- Police opened nine cases of malicious damage, three of common assault and one of public violence. Police say calm has largely returned.
Police have stepped up their deployment alongside the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) in Soweto, after violent anti-illegal immigration protests on Thursday night.
Acting National Police Commissioner Puleng Dimpane said authorities had strengthened their deployment and response after assessing the situation. She was speaking during a visit to the area on Friday morning.
She said police had been on the ground since 6am to monitor developments, support officers and keep order.
Dimpane said the security forces deployed overnight remained in place, and police were continuing to patrol the affected areas.
She confirmed that nine cases of malicious damage to property, three cases of common assault and one case of public violence had been opened after Thursday night’s unrest.
Police said investigations were under way to identify those responsible for the violence and property damage. They said suspects would be pursued and brought to justice.
In a statement after Thursday’s violence, Dimpane warned those involved in the protests in Soweto and Durban. She said 10 cars were torched in Soweto and 14 in Durban during protests outside Home Affairs offices that help asylum seekers, and that shops belonging to foreign nationals were looted. Three foreign nationals have been arrested. KwaZulu-Natal police said they were arrested over an alleged assault.
“The South African Police Service will not tolerate lawlessness. We will not allow violence, the torching of vehicles, destruction of property or attacks on people to continue,” Dimpane said.
“The right to raise concerns and to protest does not give anyone the right to commit crime. Legitimate grievances must be pursued through lawful and constitutional processes.”
According to the statement, the protests are linked to claims that the Constitutional Court’s ruling on asylum applications gives undocumented foreign nationals a blanket amnesty.
Home Affairs has said those claims are false, and that the ruling does not give asylum seekers citizenship or blanket legal status.
Calm has largely returned to the affected areas of Durban and Soweto, and police report that the situation had stabilised by Friday.
On Friday, the Department of Home Affairs withdrew the directive that had told refugee reception offices to accept every asylum seeker who reports in person.
