No arrests after xenophobic attacks in Addo
There have not yet been any arrests after xenophobic attacks in Valencia, Addo, forced hundreds of immigrant families to evacuate on Sunday.
The 'revenge attacks' by a group of men were triggered by the murder of a South African man on the weekend, allegedly by an immigrant. The mob went from house to house on Sunday, kicking immigrant families out of their homes.
At least 30 Zimbabweans were injured during the attacks and 17 are still in hospital, according to the Embassy of Zimbabwe. Four men have died, says the South African Police Service (SAPS).
The SAPS Serious and Violent Crimes Unit is investigating, said police spokesperson Majola Nkohli on Thursday.
'The situation in Addo is still tense. Police are continuing to maintain high visibility patrols in the area,' said Nkohli.
Some families have been staying at the Addo police station, too afraid to return to their homes. Hundreds of others have been evacuated to a church hall in Gqeberha. The church has requested not to be named for safety concerns.
Dennis Makolo arrived there on Thursday morning after being discharged from hospital. But he was still disoriented when we spoke to him and could not remember the hospital he was in or how he ended up at the church hall.
He said he was beaten by a 'violent mob' and now wants to find work outside of Addo. 'I have bad memories of the area.'
Anyway Hlungwani, who was beaten up with crowbars, is still in immense pain. His face is still swollen, his head wound stitched up, and he has sores all over his body.
'The truth is that I don't want to hear anything about Valencia. I was beaten for nothing … Had it not been for my wife, who bravely intervened, I could be dead by now,' he said.
Hlungwani's wife, Everjoy Chipangura, said that if they had enough money, they would have boarded the next bus to Zimbabwe. 'I don't want my child to grow up in a hostile environment. We have to start a new life again, but elsewhere,' she said.
But others staying in the hall said they cannot return to Zimbabwe and want to go back home to Valencia.
'This is the first such incident in the area,' said one man. 'I have worked on several farms in the Sundays River Valley area for nearly 20 years, but I haven't experienced this type of threat.'
'The reason why we are all here is the economic turmoil of Zimbabwe. There are no jobs. I will go back to Valencia once the police tell us that the situation has improved.'
Chairman of the Zimbabwe Migrants Support Network, Chris Mapingure, said that donations of food, clothing and toiletries are urgently needed.
'We're glad to have received amazing support from individuals, Gift of the Givers, businesses and government departments.'
This article first appeared on GroundUp. Read the original article here.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The South African
2 hours ago
- The South African
Fraud warning for SASSA black and gold card holders
The South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) and Postbank have warned social grant beneficiaries to stay vigilant against a rising wave of fraud targeting holders of both the black Postbank cards and gold SASSA cards. Fraudsters reportedly visit SASSA beneficiaries at their homes while posing as Postbank officials. These imposters deceive individuals into handing over their cards and PINs under false pretences, often claiming that the cards are faulty or that future payments will be blocked unless the information is provided. 'There is nothing that requires fixing on any of its black cards and SASSA gold cards,' Postbank confirmed in a statement. 'Both cards will continue to work beyond 31 May 2025 for the payments of their grants.' The criminals often wear uniforms and drive branded vehicles to appear legitimate. They typically arrive without appointments and insist on accessing SASSA beneficiaries' card PINs, an action that Postbank strongly condemns. Postbank has issued clear advice to help communities deal with suspicious activity: Alert neighbours discreetly and contact the police immediately. Report any such incidents to Postbank at 0800 53 54 55. Never give out your SASSA PIN even if the person claims to be an official. Memorise your PIN or, if written down, keep it far from the card. Postbank emphasised that it does not conduct uninvited home visits. Any official interaction must be requested through established home visit channels. SASSA beneficiaries should also reject any advice, even from someone claiming to be a government official, telling them to switch from their Postbank black or SASSA gold cards to other bank payment methods. '[SASSA] Beneficiaries must always remember that their cards and PINs are their personal keys to their money. They should never give them to anyone,' Postbank said. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
The Citizen
4 hours ago
- The Citizen
Truck driver found twenty times over the legal alcohol limit in KZN
He will make his first court appearance in August. The Road Traffic Inspectorate, working with the South African Police Service (Saps), have arrested a truck driver for drinking and driving in Van Reenen along the N3 Freeway. The driver is currently detained in Ladysmith. According to the MEC for Transport and Human Settlements, Siboniso Duma, the driver allegedly blew 0.32 mg/1000ml, which is three times more than the legal limit of 0.10 mg/1000 for professional drivers. ALSO READ: Tow truck driver arrested after KZN crash kills 8 Another truck driver, who was also caught driving intoxicated, will make his first appearance in court on 18 August 2025. According to Duma, the second driver was caught driving a truck and blew 2.0mg/1000ml, which is twenty times more than the legal limit of 0.10mg /1000ml. KZN truck accidents KZN has been battling the scourge of truck accidents in recent months, due to several factors. On 16 May, two trucks collided along the N3 Southbound just after the Peter Brown off-ramp, after one of the trucks allegedly experienced brake failure. A week before, a collision between a truck and a light delivery vehicle transporting passengers claimed multiple lives on the N2 highway near Empangeni. ALSO READ: Lifeless body of a driver recovered in KZN after a two-day search Eight victims lost their lives in the accident. Duma says the province has adopted a zero-tolerance attitude to drunk drivers due to the high number of accidents. 'Weeks ago, we laid to rest nine victims of a horrific accident involving a truck in Empangeni along the N2,' said Duma. 'Families lost their loved ones and breadwinners, with children becoming orphans as a result of one reckless truck driver. 'During my meeting with senior management last Monday, I instructed our RTI team to intensify their 'no-nonsense, zero-tolerance' and Alufakwa campaign on our roads. ALSO READ: Truck accident forces closure of N3 toll road as festive season ends 'We undertake to clamp down on bad behaviour in all corners of our province. 'In particular, we are paying more attention to trucks because, more than any vehicle, trucks can damage more vehicles at once, and their accidents can lead to serious injuries because of the impact.' The department said the country's roads would no longer be 'playgrounds' for irresponsible drivers. 'We must remove all these elements that are costing our country a fortune. 'We have been informed that road accidents cost the South African economy over R164 billion annually, an equivalent of 3.4% of the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP).' READ NEXT: Police arrest six truckers for theft of minerals in Pongola, KZN
IOL News
5 hours ago
- IOL News
Lieutenant General Godfrey Lebeya reflects on his legacy in the SAPS
Lieutenant General Godfrey Lebeya on Saturday delivered his last media briefing before retiring from the SAPS. Image: Ntswe Mokoena/GCIS Lieutenant General Godfrey Lebeya spoke fondly of his trials and tribulations, including being the best student of the course in June 1985 during his last media briefing before retiring from the SAPS on 1 June 2025. The SAPS- Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI-Hawks) held a legacy report briefing for the outgoing National Head in Pretoria on Saturday. Lebeya reflected on his tenure at the helm of the DPCI from 2018 to 2025 and offered insights into the milestones, challenges, and achievements during his leadership. In his parting shot, Lebeya recommended that part of the improvement plan for the SAPS should include: Work on capacitation of the DPCI to achieve 100% human resource capacity. Lebeya requested authority's to provide financial resources to achieve this. Work on the implementation of the remaining provisions of the SAPS Act. Work on the acquisition of the office accommodation for the personnel. Continue to work on acquisition of modern tools of trade. Continue to build the DPCI to be a criminal Investigative elite unit of South Africa. Lebeya began working in the SAPS at the Sophiatown Police Station on 12 May 1984 and said he aspired to be a mechanical engineer, but his application to the SAPS Benoni Mechanical School was unsuccessful. Over the years he worked at Hillbrow SAPS in Crime Prevention and Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in the house-breaking and theft unit. He was later transferred to investigate more serious cases such as murders, robberies, bribery, forgery, uttering and fraud. Lebeya went on to establish the Johannesburg North Fraud Section which was based at Sandton police station. In January 2000, he was appointed the Provincial Head of Specialised Investigations in Gauteng Province and by November 2000, he was appointed the Provincial Head of Detective Service in Gauteng on the rank of Assistant Commissioner, the current Major General rank. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ In his academic pursuit, Lebeya completed a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree and by 2006 was admitted as an Advocate of the High Court of South Africa. Lebeya also pursued a Doctorate degree which was conferred in the field of Law, Doctor of Laws (LLD) in 2012 on the topic of 'Understanding Organised Crime'. One of his crowning moments came in June 2018, when he was appointed as the National Head of the DPCI. 'Part of the style of investigation is to conduct major investigations. In Project-Driven Investigations, we initiated 113 complex projects and successfully concluded 67 which is 75% while others are still pending and others unsuccessful. A total number of 566 arrests were effected,' he said . Lebeya said he worked on enhancing technological systems and believed that the Digital Forensic Unit is growing with public private partnerships. 'We have established the Forensic Accounting Investigation which has also partnered with business to ensure transferal of skills. Our coordination of work has been enhanced with the operationalisation of the National Priority Crime Investigations and its sub-committees,' Lebeya said.
