South African police are on Tuesday monitoring the situation in Johannesburg’s Alexandra township following violent clashes between locals and foreign nationals over ownership of businesses.
There was heavy police presence in the township, with members of the South African Police Service assisting the Johannesburg Metro Police Department (JMPD) to calm down the situation following Monday’s skirmishes in which community members, who identified themselves as part of the Dudula Movement, forced foreign-run businesses to shut down.
JMPD spokesperson Xolani Fihla said “the situation is calm at the moment, with no crowds on site.”
As has become the norm in South Africa in recent years, the attacks are mostly targeted at businesses run by blacks from fellow African countries while those operated by white people were left alone.
The locals claimed that they were allegedly searching for migrant workers and shop owners who did not have valid paperwork to operate businesses in Alexandra, which is part of Soweto.
NM/jn/APA