Johannesburg mayor sticks to his guns: ‘Foreigners are criminals and must go’

Johannesburg Mayor Herman Mashaba has trashed calls by the South African Home Affairs department to retract his xenophobic remarks against Malawians and other immigrants.

Mashaba has maintained that he stands by his comments that foreigners living in the city are criminals and must go.

The mayor has claimed that rules must be upheld and respected hence illegal foreigners in the city are not welcome and must leave immediately.

He said people living in the city should have the necessary documents to prove that they are allowed to be in South Africa.

“People who are in our city illegally, whether you are South African or someone from outside, please respect our laws when you are in our city. If you do not we’ll have a challenge. Our law enforcement agencies deal with cases on a daily basis of students being robbed and when they find people, they find them with no papers whatsoever,” he said.

Mashaba also previously claimed that immigrants living in the city illegally and involved in criminal activity would be targeted by law enforcement operations.

Recently Amnesty International also condemned Mashaba saying his remarks are dangerous and divisive.

The international organisation also feared that Mashaba’s comments could incite a wave of xenophobic attacks against Malawians other immigrants across South Africa.