Ahead of planned repatriation operations, the Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) on Migration on Monday conducted a site inspection at the Beitbridge border post in Limpopo.
The IMC is chaired by the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, Mmamoloko Kubayi.
“The inspection forms part of government’s ongoing efforts to strengthen border management and enhance migration governance,” the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development said in a post on social media platform, X.
The department said Kubayi was accompanied by Deputy Minister Andries Nel; the Minister of Health Dr Aaron Motsoaledi; Minister of Public Works, Dean Macpherson; Minister of Home Affairs, Leon Schreiber, Acting Minister of Police Firoz Cachalia and the Deputy Minister of Police, Polly Boshielo.
The department said the delegation is assessing the operational readiness of the temporary processing centre ahead of planned repatriation operations.
Last week, the Commissioner of the Border Management Authority (BMA), Dr Michael Masiapato, said the BMA continues to facilitate the lawful and orderly repatriation of foreign nationals through the Beitbridge port of entry, with over 8 000 persons having been processed at the time.
READ | More than 8 000 foreign nationals processed at Beitbridge
At a media briefing on Friday, Kubayi said government is making “substantial progress” in the deportation and repatriation of undocumented foreign nationals in South Africa, reflecting the five-point comprehensive approach for managing migration through lawful, coordinated, and constitutionally sound mechanisms.
This as government has ramped up its work to clamp down on illegal immigration through the Comprehensive Approach for Migration Management announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa earlier this month.
Meanwhile, President Cyril Ramaphosa has called on South Africans to exercise their constitutional right to protest peacefully and responsibly, while warning that acts of violence, intimidation and vigilantism have no place in the country's constitutional democracy.
In his weekly newsletter on Monday, ahead of planned demonstrations against undocumented immigration on Tuesday, the President acknowledged that South Africans have raised legitimate concerns about illegal immigration, border management, pressure on public services and criminal syndicates that exploit the country's immigration system. -SAnews.gov.za
