南非今年反移民抗议升级，导致大批外国人离开该国。[1]尼日利亚商人Richard Itoro在6月登上自愿遣返航班返回尼日利亚，被迫与妻子和双胞胎子女分离。[1]Itoro在南非经营汽车经销业务长达15年并建立了家庭，此举意味着他失去了这一切。[1]
加纳发型师Emmanuel Asamoah的遭遇同样令人担忧。他于2023年前往南非，但在3个月前遭南非民众驱赶而返回加纳。[1]尽管两人均持有合法居留证件，仍然遭遇骚扰。[1]尼日利亚外交部国务部长Sola Enikanolaiye表示："我们有尼日利亚人持有合法文件留在南非的记录，但他们遭到了攻击。"[1]
南非面临严峻的失业危机，失业率超过30%。[1]南非文化部长Gayton McKenzie表示："我们说南非对非洲大陆的兄弟开放，但要合法来。带上你的证件来。"[1]然而，加纳外交部长Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa认为南非的做法违反了泛非洲主义精神。[1]此外，一名尼日利亚人在警察逮捕期间丧生，涉嫌毒品犯罪，相关事件正由独立机构调查。[1]
A surge in anti-immigrant protests across South Africa this year has prompted tens of thousands of foreign nationals to leave the country, with some making the agonizing choice to abandon their families in the process.[1] Nigerian businessman Richard Itoro boarded a voluntary repatriation flight in June, forced to separate from his wife and twin children as he returned to Nigeria.[1] After building an automotive dealership business and establishing a family life over 15 years in South Africa, Itoro lost everything due to mounting security concerns.[1] Similarly, Emmanuel Asamoah, a Ghanaian hairdresser who had arrived in South Africa in 2023, was driven out by local residents three months before returning to Ghana.[1]
The departures underscore a deepening crisis fueled by South Africa's unemployment rate exceeding 30 percent.[1] Despite holding legal residency documents, both men faced harassment and intimidation, raising questions about the safety and status of documented migrants in the country. Nigeria's State Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sola Enikanolaiye, stated: "We have records of Nigerians with legal documents staying in South Africa, but they have been attacked."[1] South Africa's Minister of Culture, Gayton McKenzie, responded by emphasizing the need for legal entry, saying: "We say South Africa is open to brothers on the African continent, but come legally. Bring your documents."[1] Ghana's Foreign Minister, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, countered that South Africa's actions violate the spirit of Pan-Africanism.[1]
The tensions escalated further following the death of a Nigerian national during police custody on alleged drug-related charges, a matter now under investigation by an independent body.[1]