Outrage as Two More Nigerians Are Killed During South Africa’s Anti-Migrant Unrest

Two more Nigerians have been reported dead in South Africa in the wake of tensions over African migrants in the former apartheid country.

Kimiebi Ebienfa, foreign ministry spokesperson, identified the deceased Nigerians as Emeka Charles Iroegbu and Musa Yunana Joe. Both citizens were killed on the same day in separate incidents.

In a statement on Sunday, Ebienfa said Iroegbu was reportedly killed by Tshwane Metro police officers who used gruesome interrogation techniques on the Nigerian. The incident happened on June 28 in Sunnyside, Pretoria.

According to the statement, the same officers were allegedly responsible for the extra-judicial killing of another Nigerian identified as Nnaemeka Mathew Andrew Ekpenyong whose case is still pending.

“No arrests have been made, even though the four officers involved are known to the South African Police Service (SAPS),” Ebienfa said.

Joe, the second citizen, popularly known as Big Joe, was reportedly killed in front of his shop on in Witbank, Mpumalanga. His killers have yet to be identified.

In April, when the xenophobic violence in South Africa began to rise, the Nigerian Consulate in Johannesburg said two Nigerians were killed.

Some repatriated Nigerians have alleged that the figures are higher.

NIGERIA ACCUSES S’AFRICAN POLICE OF COMPLICITY, THREATENS ACTION

Ebienfa said the killings of Nigerians in South Africa raised “great concern” and questions about deliberate attempts to wrongfully generalise and tag Nigerians as criminals.

“The continuing pattern of such terrible incidents is clearly evidence of complicity on the part of security operatives, especially officers of the Tshwane Metro Police, which raises the question of state responsibility under International Law,” he said.

“The recorded data collated by our Missions lays the grounds for criminal liability. It is a fact that South Africa currently has one of the highest rates of crime globally, including the culture of looting and mob action. Nigerians are more civil in our engagements with foreign nationals, and we always uphold the rule of law when dealing with illegalities. It is therefore unfair to target foreigners and make them scapegoats of endemic socio-economic conditions that need to be addressed by the authorities.”

Ebienfa asked South African authorities to conduct urgent investigations into the two killings and several other pending cases of extra-judicial killings of Nigerian nationals in South Africa, and ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice.

“We wish to place the Government of South Africa on notice that if the situation continues to persist, all options remain on the table, some of which will be activated if the uncultured and provocative trend of intolerance and apartheid-style behaviour of South Africa against foreigners is not addressed,” the statement added.

He said the federal government sympathised with the families and associates of the deceased and will continue to engage the highest authorities in South Africa until justice is served.