KZN woman caught posing as Malawian to join repatriation with boyfriend

Home Affairs

Musina – A KwaZulu-Natal woman was reportedly stopped from joining a voluntary repatriation programme after falsely claiming to be Malawian so she could leave South Africa with her boyfriend.

According to Home Affairs Acting Chief Director Albert Matsaung, Malawian officials became suspicious during an interview and determined that “the story does not add up.”

She was then handed over to South African authorities, who confirmed she was a South African citizen, eNCA reported.

Matsaung said the woman had attempted to abuse the voluntary repatriation process and warned that “people wishing to visit other countries must not abuse this process.”

He added that South Africans wanting to travel to other African countries, including to visit partners, must do so through legal channels.

Meanwhile, South Africa has deported or voluntarily repatriated more than 53,000 foreign nationals in recent weeks as the government intensifies its migration enforcement efforts following anti-immigrant protests across the country.

Speaking on behalf of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Migration, Justice and Constitutional Development Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi said the government is implementing its five-point migration strategy, which aims to strengthen border security, curb illegal immigration, modernise the country’s immigration system, tighten legislation and enhance cooperation with neighbouring states.

The latest update comes in the wake of anti-immigrant protests that swept through Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape on 30 June, prompting countries including Ghana, Malawi and Nigeria to repatriate some of their citizens amid growing safety concerns.

“Repatriations to countries beyond SADC amounts to 2 650 and includes the returns to Kenya, with a total of 431, Nigerians – 1 159, Republic of Congo – 86, Uganda – 939. So those were done in terms of arranging their travel by their countries of origin.

“In addition to the immigration, the normal deportation process continued. So this is work that happens month to month. For the month of June, 2026 alone, we have a total of 4 898 that have been deported.

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