By Johnathan Paoli
The beating of sticks, the blowing of whistles and the chorus of struggle songs echoed through Germiston on Tuesday as hundreds of demonstrators descended on the CBD, calling for tougher action against illegal immigration while insisting their campaign be conducted within the confines of the law.
The protest, organised under the banner of the March and March movement together with the Ilizwe Nathi Political Party, brought large sections of the Germiston CBD to a standstill as participants moved through the city before handing a memorandum of demands to municipal authorities and the South African Police Service (SAPS).
Many businesses, including tuck shops, salons and informal traders, remained closed for the day, while commuter activity around the Germiston Taxi Rank and Golden Walk Mall was significantly reduced, with police maintaining a visible presence throughout the march.
Under a cloudless winter sky, protesters carrying sticks and placards gathered from early morning before swelling into a sea of people stretching across several city blocks.
Songs calling for law enforcement action alternated with chants demanding the removal of undocumented foreign nationals from South African communities.
Despite the charged atmosphere, police officers from SAPS, the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department (EMPD) and private security agencies maintained a close watch over the procession as it moved peacefully through the CBD.
The focal point of the demonstration came when organisers handed over a memorandum to police officials at the Oliver Tambo Governance District, outlining demands for increased enforcement against undocumented immigrants.
Speaking after the handover, Ilizwe Nathi Political Party Ekurhuleni President Thabile Sibeko said the march was intended to press authorities to act against illegal immigration while ensuring residents worked alongside law enforcement.
“Today we came to handle a very important issue. We were demanding and requesting the support of the police to go door-to-door and ensure all those that are illegal are removed in our communities. As the crowd disperse from here, the people must go into respective communities along with the police to remove those who are illegal,” Sibeko said.
She stressed that the memorandum was not a call for vigilante action but a formal request for police cooperation.
“The memorandum entailed, actually it was a request to the SAPS, that the people should be given permission to go and remove the illegal immigrants in the communities, but they should do so hand-in-hand with the police. Now, the people cannot do anything in isolation from the police. We strongly encourage that,” she said.
Sibeko repeatedly emphasised that the movement wanted legal enforcement rather than unlawful action.
“When our people go and do any exercise that goes with the law, they must work with the police. No, we can’t work in isolation with the police, given that we are a nation. We are not calling for disorder,” she said.
“We are calling for order. We are calling for a nation that goes forward with order, not chaos, not disorder. In these matters we are complaining about illegality, but we don’t want to perpetuate illegality,” Sibeko added.
Warning supporters against taking the law into their own hands, Sibeko said those demanding enforcement must themselves remain law-abiding.
“What we are calling for is law. So, equally, we must be a people that applies the law, not who breaks the law. It would make no sense to absolutely complain about lawlessness and be the law breakers yourself,” she said.
Looking beyond Monday’s march, Sibeko said organisers believed the growing turnout reflected mounting public frustration.
“I think the biggest voice that which we have, it’s absolutely the voice of the people. It will send a message to the government, the president, to say the people are standing in one voice. Our dear president, pay attention, because the voice of the people rises above any voice that can ever attempt to speak,” she said.
She described the march as part of a sustained campaign rather than a once-off demonstration.
Sibeko said organisers had informed relevant authorities beforehand and requested police support to ensure public safety throughout the demonstration.
“No, we did not have to apply, but we had to make ourselves known and indicate our intentions of this day. So we called the respective heads of the departments and informed them that this is coordinating. We were doing this and we requested their presence and to make sure that they support us through and ensure that people are safe. Equally, we wanted the illegal immigrants and our people to be safe,” she said.
Ahead of the protest, EMPD said it had increased operational readiness across Ekurhuleni, deploying officers to identified hotspots while warning that any criminality, intimidation, vandalism or attempts by members of the public to conduct immigration enforcement themselves would not be tolerated.
The City of Ekurhuleni similarly acknowledged residents’ constitutional right to protest but urged demonstrators to remain peaceful and obey the law.
While the march itself proceeded under heavy police monitoring, it followed reports of alleged looting at a Spar in Klopper Park on Monday evening by individuals reportedly wearing March and March clothing.
Authorities have warned that any criminal conduct associated with the demonstrations will be dealt with decisively.
By mid afternoon, as protesters gradually dispersed from the CBD, police remained deployed across the city to monitor the situation and prevent any outbreaks of violence, bringing to a close one of the largest anti-illegal immigration demonstrations seen in Ekurhuleni in recent months.
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