Overview
- The March and March coalition and about 20 allied groups have scheduled nationwide demonstrations for June 30 to press for faster deportations, tighter border control and more Home Affairs resources.
- Organisers publicly say the marches will be peaceful and are framed as calls to enforce immigration law rather than attacks on foreign nationals, but they have sought to distance themselves from earlier deadly incidents linked to anti‑migrant unrest.
- Police and other agencies have cancelled leave, identified Gauteng, KwaZulu‑Natal, Eastern Cape and Western Cape as potential hotspots, mobilised Natjoints coordination and SANDF support, and warned that policing the events could cost up to R600 million.
- Authorities have already carried out large repatriations and stepped up arrests this month, raising humanitarian and diplomatic concerns after disputed casualty reports and thousands of displaced migrants were sheltered or moved.
- The protests unfold before November local elections with backing from some populist actors, and rights groups warn the heavy policing and accelerated deportations could risk abuses, diplomatic fallout and further community displacement.