South Africa's president unveils crackdown on illegal migration
Key takeaways
- Lucy Fleming AFP via Getty Images.
- But he also warned South Africans not to take the law into their own hands.
- Over the last few weeks, several African nations have been organising the evacuation of some of their nationals as fears of violence grow.
Why this matters: a developing story that could shape the day's news cycle.
Lucy Fleming AFP via Getty Images. These foreigners, who watched the speech on their phones, are camped outside Durban's home affairs department as they say they fear for their lives South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa has addressed the nation to announce a raft of new measures to crackdown on illegal migration as tensions rise over anti-foreigner marches and frustrations about high unemployment.
These steps include jailing employers who hire undocumented workers, setting up dedicated courts to speed up deportations of undocumented migrants and having a register with biometric data "for every person in the country" to stamp out identity theft.
But he also warned South Africans not to take the law into their own hands.