South Africa xenophobia: Dr Kunle Fagbemi says authorities must face justice

Dr Kunle Fagbemi, a political scientist, has called out South African authorities over the ongoing xenophobic attacks against African migrants, saying they must be brought to book. Speaking on ARISE News on Friday, he described the attacks as unfortunate and unacceptable, even as the Nigerian government starts evacuating citizens who volunteered to return home. The first batch has already landed, but some compatriots lost their lives in the violence.

Fagbemi praised the government's evacuation effort but stressed more needs to be done. He pointed out that many Nigerians in South Africa failed to register with the Nigerian High Commission, which caused hiccups during the evacuation. He said, "Some of those Nigerians we are now repatriating, painful as it may be, are people who overstayed because their visas had expired and they did not return home." That part hit me — we blame the government, but our people also have duties when abroad.

He also argued that South Africa's actions violate the African Union's Constitutive Act and the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights. He called for stronger diplomatic and legal measures, and said the continent needs to move from an African Union of governments to an African Union of the people. The question is — how many more of our people will die before we take real action against these attacks?