A coalition of 22 Islamic organisations has rejected the planned June 30 "shutdown" and called on the government to arrest and prosecute those responsible for inciting violence. Thousands of Malawian foreign nationals, seeking refuge at the Durban drive-in site on North Beach.
Image: Doctor Ngcobo/ANA Studio
A coalition of 22 Islamic organisations has rejected the planned June 30 "shutdown" and called on the government to arrest and prosecute those responsible for inciting violence.
"We are united in our opposition to the proposed national shutdown and to any acts of violence or vigilantism directed against peaceful South African citizens or foreign nationals, irrespective of whether they are documented or undocumented.
"Our opposition stems from our respect for the inherent dignity of all people and from the fact that recent anti-immigrant mobilisation has displayed increasingly violent and intimidating tendencies, contributing to instability and fear within communities in several parts of the country," the coalition said.
The 22 organisations, representing a broad spectrum of Muslim voices, include the Afro-Middle East Centre, Call of Islam, the Islamic Medical Association of South Africa, Media Review, the Muslim Youth Movement of South Africa and the South African National Muslim Women's Forum, among others.
The coalition also called on Muslim scholars and clerics to publicly condemn the planned march.
"We dare not remain silent in the face of mob threats, intimidation and lawlessness. Today it may be one vulnerable group; tomorrow it may be another.
"We call upon Muslim religious scholars and mosque leaders to dedicate the Friday congregational sermon on June 26, 2026, to condemning xenophobia, Afrophobia, Islamophobia, vigilantism and unlawful violence," the coalition said.
While acknowledging concerns about immigration, the coalition also called for the underlying frustrations facing many South Africans to be addressed.
"We urge the government and the private sector to tackle the social and economic conditions that fuel anti-immigrant sentiment in communities, including poverty, unemployment and inequality.
"We further caution that anti-immigration movements around the world have often been exploited by sinister, extremist, racist and exclusionary political forces to sow division, undermine social cohesion and destabilise societies. South Africa must guard against such tendencies and remain committed to its values of human dignity, equality and human rights," the organisations said.
The statement comes amid growing concern over the June 30 protest against illegal immigration planned by civic movement March and March.
Fears of violence — despite organisers' insistence that the protest will be peaceful — have prompted a R600 million allocation for security operations aimed at maintaining public safety.
Despite this, the eThekwini Municipality has declined permission for the march, adding to tensions ahead of the planned protest. Organisers, however, have vowed to proceed regardless.