By Twaha Mukiibi
South Africa’s intensified enforcement against undocumented migrants cannot be separated from the country’s apartheid history and growing economic pressures, veteran commentator Mr. Mutumba Kayongo has said.
Speaking on Salam TV’s Omukeeze programme hosted by Twaha Mukiibi, Kayongo, a traveller and analyst who has visited 86 countries, argued that the current operations targeting undocumented migrants are rooted in deeper social and economic challenges that date back to the era of racial segregation.
“South Africa’s problem originates way back in apartheid times when people were treated like animals, kept away from whites, and denied education and basic services — things that did not happen to the same extent in other African countries,” Kayongo said.
He said apartheid policies confined much of the Black population to underdeveloped settlements with limited access to education and essential services, creating challenges whose effects continued even after the country’s transition to democracy in 1994.
“After independence, they had no skills to run many of their public affairs. The social fabric had been eroded. Almost three decades later, there is a new generation that does not know where the country came from,” he said.
Kayongo linked the growing hostility towards foreign nationals to high youth unemployment and economic frustration, arguing that migrants often become convenient targets during periods of hardship.
“So it’s almost natural that they look upon foreign black people as the first scapegoats for their troubles,” he said.
He also pointed to global economic pressures, including trade restrictions and their impact on businesses and employment. Kayongo argued that increased tariffs can contribute to capital flight, which affects investment and job creation.
“When tariffs rise, capital flight follows. With it, jobs. Many observers forget to look at this implication on South African businesses,” he said.
According to Kayongo, decades of racial discrimination under white minority rule left what he described as a deep psychological wound that continues to influence social attitudes.
“Having suffered under that cruel white minority rule left a huge psychological wound on the general population. There is mistrust of foreigners. Sadly, the easiest targets happen to be immigrants from across the River Limpopo and further north,” he said.
He cautioned that migration tensions following major political transitions are not unique to South Africa, citing examples including farm seizures in Zimbabwe, the movement of Russian nationals from former Soviet states after 1991, and challenges faced by some British residents in Hong Kong following the 1997 handover.
“What is happening in South Africa is not new,” Kayongo said.
South Africa’s Department of Home Affairs reported 57,784 deportations in the 2025/26 financial year as part of government operations aimed at addressing illegal immigration.
While authorities have defended the measures as necessary to enforce immigration laws, analysts argue that unemployment, economic inequality and historical factors continue to shape debates around migration and social tensions in the country.
