Durban – March and March leader Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma has vowed to remain outside the Home Affairs Refugee Reception Centre in Durban until government addresses what she describes as a crisis in the country’s asylum system.
Ngobese-Zuma and other anti-illegal immigration protesters camped outside the Che Guevara Road office overnight and continued demonstrating on Thursday as tensions around the processing of new asylum applications escalated.
According to IOL, Protesters sang struggle songs and chanted slogans while Public Order Police in riot gear were deployed along the street.
Some protesters carrying sticks and knobkerries also patrolled the surrounding area, while people attempting to enter the refugee centre were confronted.
Ngobese-Zuma said Home Affairs should first deal with its existing backlog and establish which applicants have legitimate claims for refugee protection.
“We have a right to express our dissatisfaction in our country, and that is what democracy is all about. We will continue demonstrating until government finds a way out of this mess,” she said.
She accused government of being slow to respond to concerns about illegal immigration and claimed that the asylum system was being abused.
“March and March is doing this for the entire country and not for me personally. Enough is enough. Government is slow to react to issues around illegal immigrants,” Ngobese-Zuma said.
March and March leader Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma is calling on government to immediately begin the process of moving refugee centres to the country’s borders. She says the Constitution should not give greater protection to outsiders than to South Africans. Tune in to #eNCA on #DStv403 https://t.co/RogDJvpxWb
— eNCA (@eNCA) October 8, 2026
The protest follows a Constitutional Court judgment that opened access to the asylum process to people who had previously been prevented from applying because of procedural barriers.
Home Affairs subsequently directed refugee reception offices to receive people who indicate that they want to apply for asylum.
The ruling has sparked a surge in people seeking access to the asylum system, as well as protests from groups opposed to the government’s approach to immigration.
Hundreds of foreign nationals had been queuing outside the Durban centre to have their asylum applications processed, with Ngobese-Zuma among those protesting against the court ruling
The situation in Durban has become increasingly tense.
Protesters blocked access to the centre and that police were deployed after clashes between protesters and asylum seekers
The Refugee Appeals Authority (RAA) also issued a notice calling on asylum seekers with pending appeals to report to its offices urgently to receive and acknowledge notices relating to their cases.
The authority said the affected applicants form part of a priority backlog programme aimed at speeding up outstanding appeals.
Under Rule 10 of the Refugee Appeals Authority Rules, appellants would ordinarily receive at least 30 days’ notice of a hearing.
However, the RAA said applicants could consent to a reduced 10-day notice period to allow their appeals to be heard more quickly.
The authority warned that people who fail to report for service of notices could have their appeals determined on the documents already before it.
Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma says that in a democracy, laws and court rulings should be open to review if they no longer reflect the concerns of the people, regardless of whether they were issued by the Constitutional Court. https://t.co/PUtFl7XKhH
— Durban Network (@Durbannetwork) October 8, 2026
The protests have also affected businesses and other operations around Che Guevara Road.
Berea Mail reported that the refugee reception office had been shut down amid the protests, with the disruption affecting traffic and businesses in the area
The standoff comes as government faces growing pressure to manage the increased demand for asylum services while implementing the Constitutional Court judgment.
Ngobese-Zuma, however, has made it clear that she intends to continue the protest.
“We will continue demonstrating until government finds a way out of this mess,” she said.
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Picture: Facebook/ Jacinta Zinhle MaNgobese Zuma
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Compiled by Glaan Sibuyi
