'March and March' Movement Vows 6 Months of Weekly Anti-Immigrant Protests as South Africa Burns

State of Emergency Looms: 'March and March' Movement Vows 6 Months of Weekly Anti-Immigrant Protests as South Africa Burns

Focus: Regional Immigration & Security Crisis  |  Report By: Sona Regional Security Desk

In a chilling escalation that threatens to plunge South Africa into a protracted humanitarian and security crisis, the radical "March and March" movement has officially declared a ruthless six-month campaign of weekly anti-immigrant protests.

Riot police and fire in the streets representing the South African protests
A NATION ON EDGE: As the 'March and March' movement formalizes its anti-immigration campaign, widespread looting, arson, and vigilante justice have forced the deployment of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF).

The announcement was made by movement leader Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma during a fiery address in Durban, escalating tensions following a weekend of demonstrations that descended into violent looting, arson, and xenophobic attacks across several provinces. As thousands of Zimbabweans and other foreign nationals flee the country—only to be slapped with 5-year re-entry bans by the Department of Home Affairs—the movement insists that the chaos will continue every single Thursday until the government meets their border enforcement demands.

The 6-Month Thursday Ultimatum

The movement has formalized its strategy, promising to paralyze major cities every week until their extreme border control demands are met.

Addressing a charged crowd in Durban, Ngobese-Zuma made it clear that the movement will not be deterred by police intervention.

"Every Thursday for Six Months" Supporters have been ordered to mobilize nationwide every Thursday as part of an ongoing campaign of attrition against undocumented migration. Ngobese-Zuma stated the movement would not back down until top officials responded directly with policy action.
Militarizing the Borders Among the group’s uncompromising demands is massive funding for the Border Management Authority (BMA). They are demanding the immediate hiring of at least 10,000 new border officers and the construction of stronger physical barriers, including expansive border fencing, to lock down the nation.

Gauteng Burns: Vigilantism and SANDF Deployment

While leaders promised peaceful marches, the reality on the ground in Gauteng quickly descended into targeted violence, forcing the military to step in.

Johannesburg Inner City Under Siege By mid-afternoon, large mobs moved aggressively through Hillbrow, Yeoville, and Berea. Reports flooded in of severe property damage, vehicles set alight, and mobs attempting to force entry into residential buildings suspected of housing foreign nationals. Personal belongings of vulnerable migrants were dragged into the streets and destroyed.
Military Deployed to Kliptown The South African Police Service (SAPS) quickly found their capacity stretched beyond their limits. As authorities struggled to contain the volatility, the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) was officially deployed to Kliptown to stabilize the area and disperse violent crowds.
"Citizen Arrests" & Looting Sprees Vigilante justice has taken over the streets. In Daveyton, mobs demanded identification documents from anyone suspected of being a migrant. In Germiston, gangs carried out illegal "citizen’s arrests," detaining undocumented individuals. Meanwhile, Somali-owned shops were heavily looted in Cosmo City and Mamelodi, and foreign-owned businesses in Tembisa’s Winnie Mandela area were forced to shut down under extreme intimidation.

KwaZulu-Natal: Refugee Sites Targeted

The unrest rapidly spilled over into KwaZulu-Natal, where refugee sites and informal settlements became primary targets for the mobs.

Police in KZN spent the day battling to prevent full-scale massacres at vulnerable migrant camps.

Che Guevara Road Standoff At a refugee site on Che Guevara Road in Durban, hundreds of protesters gathered, launching intimidation attempts against foreign nationals. The standoff prompted a massive, heavy-handed police presence to prevent a bloodbath.
Arrests in Sydenham & Madiba In Briardene, foreign-owned shops faced break-in attempts while fires raged nearby. In Sydenham, the situation grew so volatile that a woman was arrested for physically assaulting police officers who were intervening to save a foreign national from an attack. Further arrests were confirmed linked to the looting of migrant businesses in the Madiba informal settlement.
SONA REGIONAL SECURITY BUREAU

A Region on the Brink

The declaration of a six-month, weekly protest campaign by the March and March movement is a terrifying prospect not just for South Africa, but for the entire SADC region. With the SANDF already deployed and vigilantism rampant, the line between "peaceful protest" and xenophobic terrorism has vanished. For the thousands of Zimbabweans trapped in this nightmare—forced to choose between mob violence in South Africa or a punitive 5-year travel ban upon fleeing—the regional diplomatic silence is deafening. Thursdays in South Africa have officially become a weekly powder keg.

@ Sona Headlines | Reporting Without Fear or Favor

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