Johannesburg – Kopanang Africa Against Xenophobia (KAAX) says it is “deeply alarmed” by the ongoing humanitarian catastrophe unfolding outside the Malawi Consulate in Johannesburg.
For several days, a huge number of Malawi nationals have camped outside the consulate in n Woodmead, Johannesburg, hoping to be assisted with voluntary repatriation to their home country.
The Malawians failed to meet the June 30 deadline set by anti-migration groups for undocumented foreign nationals to leave South Africa or face unspecified consequences.
They remain fearful yet hopeful that the Malawi government will send buses to take them home.
The Malawians, some of them with small children, are sleeping out in the open during the cold winter nights.
Commenting on the unfolding human tragedy, KAAX today, Saturday, 4 July 2026, said the deplorable situation was a “continued failure of the South African state to uphold its constitutional and legal obligations to protect all people within its borders”.
KAAX said the process of repatriating the Malawians was flawed and conducted without proper safeguards.
“Last night, members of the South African Police Service (SAPS) and Immigration officials conducted an operation at the Malawi Consulate, transporting 1 030 adults and 80 children to the Lindela Repatriation Centre,” KAAX said.
“Two pregnant women were taken to a shelter.
“Approximately 70 adults and four children remain outside the Consulate and have been informed they will be transported to Lindela tomorrow morning.”
KAAX said it was able to de-escalate the situation and prevent the Public Order Policing unit from using excessive force or displaying unnecessary weapons.
“However, this does not excuse the fundamental failures of this operation,” KAAX said, adding that the handling of young Malawians was a flagrant violation of children’s rights.
“Most concerning is the complete absence of the Department of Social Development during the night operation.
“There was no visible presence of the Department of Social Development to provide support or oversight for the 80 children who were transported.”
KAAX said this was a direct violation of the Children’s Act and international protocols which mandate that children in such situations must be handled with appropriate care and oversight.
“The state cannot simply disappear children into the system without proper social work intervention and support.”
KAAX warned that shifting the crisis was not a solution to the problem.
“The situation at the Malawi Consulate is merely one node in a cascading crisis,” KAAX stated.
“Hundreds of people continue to arrive from across Gauteng and beyond, having been chased from their homes and communities.
‘Last night, people who had been forced to sleep in a cemetery – fearing for their lives – pitched up at the Malawian embassy seeking safety.”
This was not an isolated incident, said KAAX, adding that it has previously highlighted how displaced migrants were being transported from one province to another without adequate planning, protection, accommodation or support.
“The state’s approach is simply to shift the crisis – from communities where people are attacked and evicted, to whatever location they are dumped, then to Lindela, then to Beit Bridge and the borders,” KAAX said.
“This is not a solution; it is a conveyor belt of suffering that is backing up and creating an even greater humanitarian mess. Criminal Acts Against Mothers and Infants
“This morning, police arrested a Malawian woman with a two-week-old breastfeeding baby because she allegedly did not have papers.”
KAAX said the Department of Social Development took her two-week-old breastfeeding baby from her.
“She has been taken to police custody, and mother and infant have been separated. This is criminal behaviour. This is against the law.”
So far, The Bulrushes has not yet obtained official comment from the authorities regarding the matters raised by KAAX.
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