Security agencies on high alert
2010-07-08 19:21
Pretoria - Security agencies are on high alert to ensure that xenophobic violence is quelled as quickly as possible, Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa said on Thursday.
"Our security agencies are prepared to effectively deal with violence against anyone, including foreign nationals," Mthethwa said at a press conference in Pretoria on xenophobic violence.
"We continue to monitor all and any threats. Should anything be found to be credible, measures will be implemented immediately to prevent any outbreak of violence."
Mthethwa said that an investigation had found that the scores of foreigners leaving Cape Town in the past few days were not going out of fear of xenophobic violence, but because they were seasonal workers.
"The people who planted this in the media did no investigation whatsoever," he said.
"We will resist this hysteria. We investigated this issue and the first thing we got is that we are dealing with seasonal workers."
Ports of entry extremely busy
Deputy Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba said his department was taking the rumours of xenophobic violence seriously.
"These rumours run the risk of eroding the victory we scored with the World Cup," he said. "We will not allow that."
He said South Africa's ports of entry were extremely busy with foreigners leaving.
He said that most of the people leaving were from Lesotho and Southern African Development Community countries, but that this had nothing to do with xenophobic violence.
"There are no reports of people leaving out of fear for xenophobic violence," he said.
State Security Minister Siyabonga Cwele said a small group of instigators were fuelling the rumours of xenophobic violence.
"Those who are planning on breaking our law, will be dealt with by the law enforcement agencies."
- SAPA