The influx of African immigrants to South Africa, which began post-1994, exploded in xenophobic violence in 2008 and there have been tensions ever since.
The recent looting of foreign-owned shops in Gauteng is regarded by some as a consequence of government’s failure to control numbers of undocumented immigrants.
The Beit Bridge border post in Musina is one of the main entry ports…some people come to trade and return to their countries, others to remain to try to make a living.
Beit Bridge border post is one of South Africa’s busiest points of entry, over the years this post has seen an influx of asylum seekers majority from Zimbabwe and the DRC.
Musina Business Chairman Lukhele Setuke says this influx came with its share of challenges.
“We have seen a spike in crime, to be honest, and you know it was like something that has been slowly coming creeping in, but all of the sudden its hitting the roof. There has been plenty of robberies, I mean serious robberies, business robberies, and of course, that has tended to go to house burglaries and also pick-pocketing.
The most worrying factor is the state of the borderline which offers very little protection and control.”
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