President Cyril Ramaphosa has authorised the deployment of 510 South African National Defence Force (SANDF) members to KwaZulu-Natal to support the police and maintain law and order during anti-immigration protests.
Ramaphosa informed National Assembly Speaker Thoko Didiza, in a letter dated October 21, that the soldiers were being deployed in the province in support of Operation Prosper.
This followed a recent Constitutional Court judgment in which the court ruled that asylum seekers cannot be barred, rejected, or disqualified from lodging an asylum claim based on immigration-related procedural errors or non-compliance before their claims are evaluated on their merits.
“The misinformation surrounding the Constitutional Court judgment led to violence in anti-immigration protests in KZN province. Members of the SANDF will be on standby for any eventualities,” said Ramaphosa.
He said the army will be deployed until November 30, with the deployment expected to cost just over R34 million.
Following an operational directive issued by the Department of Home Affairs last month to implement the ruling, widespread false claims surged on social media and online platforms falsely claiming that the ruling or the Home Affairs directive granted automatic citizenship, jobs and voting rights to migrants, among others.
The department withdrew the directive following protests and violent demonstrations in KwaZulu-Natal and parts of Soweto.
The Inter-Ministerial Committee on Migration, which is chaired by Justice and Constitutional Development Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi, also announced that it was going to approach the Constitutional Court to request a supervisory order following the apex court's ruling.
“We reiterate our acknowledgement of the judgment of the Constitutional Court and reaffirm government's unwavering commitment to upholding the Constitution, the Rule of Law, and South Africa's national and international obligations towards refugees and asylum seekers.
“We have carefully considered the implications of the judgment and various options to respond to the challenge arising from its subsequent order as promised in our last briefing,” said Kubayi at the time.
She said following detailed legal consultations, the government was advised that it can approach the courts to seek a supervisory order, which in practical terms, would enable the court to retain oversight of the implementation process and provide guidance on how the order should be operationalised.
“Such an order may also include a suspension period to allow the Department of Home Affairs the necessary time to develop and strengthen administrative, human resource, infrastructure, and processing capacity required to implement the judgment effectively and sustainably.”
“We believe that this approach represents a responsible and lawful mechanism to ensure that constitutional obligations are fulfilled in a manner that is orderly, practical and in the public interest. It will allow government to avoid administrative disruption while ensuring that the rights recognised by the court are progressively and meaningfully realised,” said Kubayi.
Meanwhile, March and March leader Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma has previously criticised the government’s decision to deploy the SANDF to Durban after anti-illegal immigration marches turned violent.
Ngobese-Zuma told journalists earlier this month the decision amounted to the government “fighting against its own people”.
She added that the movement had previously asked the government to deploy the army to deal with other threats in KwaZulu-Natal, without success.
Security experts have also previously criticised the deployment of the army within the republic, saying soldiers are not trained to do policing work.