Soweto informal traders march for government action on illegal immigration

Informal traders in Soweto have taken to the streets to demand government intervention on illegal immigration, linking the issue to shrinking job and business opportunities in their community. The demonstrations around the iconic Walter Sisulu Square came two days before a self-imposed June 30 deadline for undocumented migrants to leave South Africa.

Traders say competition has tightened business prospects

Some stores around Walter Sisulu Square remained closed as traders gathered and prepared to march to Moroka Police Station. Protesters said the presence of undocumented foreigners has made trading more difficult for long-standing local sellers.

“We want undocumented foreigners to leave because they have made trading here difficult for us. Our lives as informal traders were much better before they arrived here and started telling us how to conduct our business, even though we were the first to arrive here,”

said Khanyisele Mkhwanazi.

“We are not lazy. We have never been lazy. This economy belongs to us, but what has happened is that we are being squeezed out of this economy by illegal foreigners, who have been allowed by our government to do as they please,”

said Nhlanhla Magwaza, who has been selling alongside her sister since 2007.

Personal stories underline frustration

Seventy-six-year-old Sophie Mbengwa recounting decades of informal trading described a personal history of hard work in the area. She said she had been arrested on the same day she gave birth to her second daughter, who now sells fruits and vegetables with her.

“When people say we are lazy as South Africans. What are they talking about, as I have raised nine children while working as an informal trader? It is an insult, really, to be told we are lazy,”

Mbengwa said.

Kliptown resident Annah Mjoli, who joined the march, expressed concern about youth unemployment locally:

“We have become pensioners without having enjoyed the benefits of democracy. Right now, our children are getting older without holding a permanent job,”

she said.

Marches and wider movements linked to repatriation activity

Demonstrators split into smaller groups to march toward the Kliptown, Moroka and Lenasia SAPS stations, calling for government measures to prioritise local traders’ needs.

Media reports cited by the demonstrators said more than 500 Malawian nationals were taken to the Lindela Repatriation Centre for processing over the weekend. The reports also said Malawian nationals continued to gather at the Sandton consulate seeking help with voluntary repatriation while the consulate remained closed for the weekend.

Churches, volunteers and organisations were reported to have mobilised to assist hundreds of Malawian nationals outside the Malawi Consulate General in Woodmead.

What protesters want

Overall, the traders’ unified message was a call for government action to create a more favourable business environment for long-standing local sellers and to address what they see as the economic pressures linked to undocumented immigration.