South Africa's new wave of xenophobic violence: deliberate distortion of court ruling, vague government response, and structural unemployment intertwined

Streets in Soweto on the outskirts of Johannesburg and the eastern port city of Durban were engulfed in flames on Thursday. According to BBC reports, police statistics show at least 24 vehicles burned — 14 in Durban, 10 in Soweto — multiple foreign-owned shops looted, and a building set on fire.

The spark for the riots — condemned by Acting National Police Commissioner Lieutenant General Puleng Dimpane — was in fact a Constitutional Court ruling from three months earlier. According to BBC reports, the Constitutional Court ruled in July that South Africa's previous prohibition on allowing some overstayers or undocumented entrants to seek asylum was unconstitutional, and that applicants should be allowed to submit asylum applications even when they lack the required documents. In the weeks after the ruling, hundreds gathered at reception centers to submit materials, and within anti-immigrant camps it also intensified South African society's unease over illegal immigrant groups.

Government spokesperson William Baloyi told Reuters explicitly that some people had deliberately spread false information about the ruling, "creating the impression that undocumented immigrants will automatically obtain legal status." According to BBC, Baloyi stressed that the ruling does not mean automatic granting of refugee status or permanent residence; applications still require case-by-case review, and applicants will continue to undergo immigration inspection.

Yet the clarifications came too late to the streets of Durban and Soweto. According to BBC reports, protesters gathered outside a government refugee reception center in Durban, demanding that asylum applications stop being accepted; police fired rubber bullets at the crowd, and shops in the city center were forced to close. In Orlando West in Soweto, residents initially gathered demanding the closure of small convenience stores operated by foreigners (locally known as spaza shops); protesters drove foreign merchants out of some areas, and gunshots rang out during the clashes.

The South African Department of Home Affairs' statement acknowledged multiple facets of the crisis. According to BBC, the Department of Home Affairs admitted current policy had left staff "overwhelmed," and stated that "serious threats to public safety and order have emerged." The government announced that it would adjust the way the ruling is enforced, but details were not disclosed.

Three foreigners accused of attacking a demonstrator at the Durban protest site were arrested by police. According to BBC, quoting local senior police officer Xolani Fihla speaking to the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC): "Conflicts broke out between foreign nationals and South African nationals in the area." "At present I can confirm there are no reported casualties." Police have deployed reinforcements to prevent further escalation of violence.

This violence continues a cycle spanning nearly two decades. According to a BBC retrospective, the 2008 attacks killed more than 60 people and displaced tens of thousands; earlier in 2026, anti-immigrant groups launched protests lasting several weeks, demanding that undocumented foreigners leave by June 30, forcing tens of thousands of immigrants to return home through government-organized repatriation programs.

Any understanding of this cycle cannot sidestep the structural predicaments of the South African economy. According to BBC reports, approximately one-third of South Africa's labor force is unemployed, and poverty and inequality run deep. Although supporting evidence is lacking, researchers note that immigrants are widely blamed for stealing jobs, exacerbating crime, and increasing the burden on public services — a typical path by which structural contradictions are shifted onto the most vulnerable groups.