Nigeria and South Africa tried to ease tensions after violent anti-migrant protests. But the rift is back

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Protesters in South Africa have given migrants living illegally in the country until the end of the month to leave. If that sounds familiar, it comes months after another deadline came and went. And while the threat carries no legal force, it is causing major ructions between Africa’s richest country and its most populous — Nigeria.

In the wake of anti-migrant protests, rising tensions and even killings, some Nigerians – who are predominantly affected by the unrest – are leaving the country altogether. Others are closing businesses, seeking safety near the Nigerian mission or keeping their children out of school, Nigerian community representatives in South Africa say.

At the heart of these tensions are South Africa’s economic woes, with protesters pointing the finger at migrants — a pattern seen across the globe.

“High unemployment, pressure on public services and anxieties about crime create a political environment in which migrants can become convenient scapegoats,” Fola Aina, an international security analyst who teaches development studies at SOAS University of London, told CNN.

The unofficial deadline calls for undocumented foreigners to leave South Africa, but nor have documented migrants been spared.

Nigerians have emerged as some of its most visible victims. Nigeria says nearly 100 of its nationals have died in mob attacks and other incidents linked to anti-migrant violence in South Africa since 2022.

That hostility comes against a backdrop of longstanding negative perceptions of Nigerians in South Africa, which Pretoria says has been fueled by the alleged involvement of some Nigerian nationals in organized crime, drug trafficking and financial fraud.

The fallout is also being felt hundreds of miles away in Nigeria’s capital Abuja, where a diplomatic rift is reopening. Nigeria’s parliament has suspended official visits and legislative engagements with South Africa as anger mounts over the treatment of Nigerians.

The deaths of two more Nigerians in South Africa this month have only added to those tensions.

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Anti-migrant rhetoric had been building for months when groups, including March and March, gave undocumented migrants until June 30 to leave the country.

Campaigners blamed foreigners for unemployment, crime and pressure on public services.

As the deadline approached, thousands of foreign nationals sought to leave. Nearly 1,700 Nigerians voluntarily evacuated this year, according to Nigerian officials.

On June 30, demonstrations were held in cities including Johannesburg and Durban. While many were peaceful, reports also described clashes, looting and violence.

The departures continued after the deadline. Between June 14 and August 20, more than 86,000 foreign nationals were processed for repatriation and deportation, according to South African government figures, with Malawians making up the largest group.

As the June 30 deadline neared, two Nigerians were killed. But the campaign is not over as protesters say anti-migrant action will restart on September 30.

“There is significant anxiety and fear within the Nigerian community,” Akindele Olufemi Olunloyo, National Publicity Secretary of the Nigerian Union South Africa, told CNN.

In July, South African Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola traveled to Abuja for talks to ease tensions. Both governments condemned xenophobic violence and discussed protecting foreign nationals.

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South Africa has also pushed back against the anti-migrant campaign at home , stressing that immigration enforcement is the responsibility of the state. President Cyril Ramaphosa said in August that his government “firmly and publicly rejected xenophobia, Afrophobia, vigilantism, and all forms of discrimination against migrants.”

Yet two months after the Abuja talks, Nigeria said two more of its citizens had been killed in South Africa – and blamed police for one of the deaths.

According to Nigeria’s foreign ministry , Michael Taiwo Fakunle, a bishop, was shot dead at his Johannesburg home on September 4 after allegedly receiving threats. A day later, James Uchechukwu Nwankwo died following what the ministry described as “gruesome interrogation techniques” by South African police officers.

South African police have given a different account of Nwankwo’s death. A police spokesperson told local media that he was arrested on suspicion of drug possession but developed breathing difficulties on the way to a police station. Police said an inquest was opened and that there were no visible signs that he had been assaulted.

CNN has contacted South African police and South Africa’s foreign ministry for comment.

Femi Fani-Kayode, Nigeria’s ambassador-designate to South Africa, Lesotho and Eswatini, said eight Nigerians have been killed in South Africa this year, four allegedly by police officers.

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“Our patience is wearing thin,” Fani-Kayode wrote in a post on Facebook. He said South Africans in Nigeria don’t face similar violence “by our people or our security forces,” adding that there would be “consequences” if the killings continued.

Aina, the security analyst from SOAS, says that Abuja’s decision to suspend official visits to South Africa and the legislative boycott shows the issue’s growing political weight in Nigeria.

“Nigeria’s response has become more assertive,” Aina said.

But he cautioned against interpreting the move as a breakdown in relations. It does not end government-level contacts or existing agreements.

“Its significance lies in the political signal that business as usual is no longer acceptable,” he said.

The swift return of tensions, Aina added, also exposes the limits of July’s talks.

“Condemnations and assurances are important, but they cannot substitute for effective policing, credible investigations, prosecution of perpetrators and sustained protection of vulnerable communities,” he said.

South Africa’s immigration debate involves migrants from across the continent, and Nigerians are only one community caught up in it.

“This is fundamentally a broader South African debate over immigration, economic insecurity and national identity,” Aina said.

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The tensions have also opened a dispute over who should bear the financial cost.

Nigeria sought compensation for citizens who lost property and businesses amid the June violence. But South Africa has made a financial demand of its own, saying it would seek reimbursement from African governments for the cost of repatriating and deporting their citizens.

As thousands of foreigners sought to leave amid the protests, South African authorities helped process and facilitate their voluntary repatriation. Separately, the government continued deporting people found to be in the country illegally.

SALIM DAWOOD/AFP/AFP/Getty Images

Xenophobia has reared its ugly head again in the Rainbow Nation. African nations have had enough

Nigeria, however, said it had received no formal request from South Africa to reimburse those costs.

South Africa’s Department of Home Affairs told CNN that it intends to pursue reimbursement — through diplomatic channels rather than the courts.

Nigeria and South Africa are among Africa’s most influential economies and political powers.

Nigeria supported South Africa’s anti-apartheid struggle. Yet relations have not always been easy.

In 1995, then-South African President Nelson Mandela criticized Nigeria’s military government after the execution of writer Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight others, straining relations between the two countries.

In 2012, another row erupted after South Africa deported 125 Nigerians over allegedly invalid yellow fever certificates. Nigeria retaliated by deporting South Africans before Pretoria apologized.

Ihsaan Haffejee/Anadolu/Getty Images

More recently, xenophobic violence in 2015 caused fresh tensions , while another outbreak in 2019 prompted Nigeria to evacuate hundreds of citizens and boycott the World Economic Forum meeting in Cape Town.

That same year, South Africa temporarily shut its diplomatic missions in Nigeria after retaliatory attacks on South African-owned businesses.

The pattern has become familiar: attacks on foreigners in South Africa trigger anger in Nigeria, tensions rise and eventually both governments try to repair relations.

But repeated flare-ups risk consequences beyond the bilateral relationship.

Aina says prolonged tensions could hurt commercial ties and make cooperation on regional security and economic integration more difficult.

“The wider concern is that a dispute between two influential African states could undermine the credibility of the African Union’s commitment to continental solidarity and free movement,” he added.

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南非的抗议者给非法居住在该国的移民下了最后通牒，要求他们在月底前离开。如果这听起来似曾相识，那是因为几个月前，类似的最后期限也已过去。虽然这一威胁不具备法律效力，但它正在非洲最富裕的国家南非和人口最多的国家尼日利亚之间引发巨大的动荡。

在反移民抗议、紧张局势升级甚至发生杀戮事件之后，一些受动乱影响最大的尼日利亚人选择彻底离开南非。南非的尼日利亚社区代表表示，还有一些人关闭了店铺，前往尼日利亚使领馆附近寻求庇护，或者让孩子辍学。

这些紧张局势的核心是南非的经济困境，抗议者将矛头指向移民——这种模式在世界各地都有发生。

“高失业率、公共服务压力和对犯罪的担忧营造了一种政治环境，在这种环境下，移民可能成为方便的替罪羊，”伦敦大学亚非学院发展研究专业的国际安全分析师福拉·艾纳告诉 CNN。

非官方的最后期限要求无证外国人离开南非，但有证移民也未能幸免。

尼日利亚人已成为其中最引人注目的受害者之一。尼日利亚称，自2022年以来，已有近100名尼日利亚公民在南非与反移民暴力相关的暴徒袭击和其他事件中丧生。

这种敌意源于南非长期以来对尼日利亚人的负面看法，比勒陀利亚方面表示，这种负面看法是由于一些尼日利亚国民涉嫌参与有组织犯罪、毒品走私和金融诈骗而加剧的。

这场冲突的影响也波及数百英里之外的尼日利亚首都阿布贾，两国的外交裂痕再次出现。由于民众对尼日利亚公民遭受的待遇日益不满，尼日利亚议会已暂停与南非的官方互访和立法活动。

本月又有两名尼日利亚人在南非丧生，这更加剧了这些紧张局势。

Themba Hadebe/美联社/档案照片

反移民言论已经持续数月，包括 March and March 在内的多个组织要求无证移民在 6 月 30 日前离开该国。

活动人士将失业、犯罪和公共服务压力归咎于外国人。

随着最后期限临近，数千名外国公民试图离开。据尼日利亚官员称，今年已有近1700名尼日利亚人自愿撤离。

6月30日，约翰内斯堡和德班等城市举行了示威游行。虽然许多游行是和平的，但也有报道称发生了冲突、抢劫和暴力事件。

截止日期过后，离境潮仍在继续。据南非政府统计，6月14日至8月20日期间，超过8.6万名外国公民被办理遣返和驱逐手续，其中马拉维人占比最大。

随着6月30日最后期限的临近，两名尼日利亚人被杀害。但这场运动并未结束，抗议者称反移民行动将于9月30日重新开始。

“尼日利亚社区内部存在着严重的焦虑和恐惧，”尼日利亚联盟南非分会全国宣传秘书阿金德勒·奥卢费米·奥伦洛约告诉CNN。

7月，南非外交部长罗纳德·拉莫拉前往阿布贾举行会谈，旨在缓和紧张局势。两国政府均谴责仇外暴力行为，并讨论了保护外国公民的问题。

马可·隆加里/法新社/盖蒂图片社

南非也在国内反击反移民运动，强调移民执法是国家的责任。总统西里尔·拉马福萨在8月份表示，他的政府“坚决公开地反对仇外心理、仇非心理、私刑以及一切形式的歧视移民的行为”。

然而，在阿布贾会谈两个月后，尼日利亚表示又有两名尼日利亚公民在南非丧生，并指责警方应对其中一起死亡事件负责。

据尼日利亚外交部消息，主教迈克尔·泰沃·法昆勒 (Michael Taiwo Fakunle) 于9月4日在约翰内斯堡的家中遭枪击身亡，据称此前他曾收到威胁。一天后，詹姆斯·乌切丘库·恩万科 (James Uchechukwu Nwankwo) 死于南非警方“残忍的审讯手段”，外交部称其死于此类审讯。

南非警方对恩万科的死因给出了不同的说法。一位警方发言人告诉当地媒体，恩万科因涉嫌持有毒品被捕，但在被送往警察局的途中出现呼吸困难。警方表示，已展开死因调查，并且没有发现他曾遭受袭击的迹象。

CNN已联系南非警方和南非外交部寻求置评。

尼日利亚即将出任的驻南非、莱索托和斯威士兰大使费米·法尼-卡约德表示，今年已有八名尼日利亚人在南非被杀，其中四人据称是被警察杀害的。

Per-Anders Pettersson/Getty Images/文件

“我们的耐心已经快要耗尽了，”法尼-卡约德在脸书上发帖写道。他表示，在尼日利亚的南非人不会面临“来自我们自己人或我们安全部队的类似暴力”，并补充说，如果杀戮继续下去，将会“产生后果”。

伦敦大学亚非学院的安全分析师艾娜表示，阿布贾决定暂停对南非的官方访问以及立法抵制表明，这个问题在尼日利亚的政治影响力日益增强。

“尼日利亚的回应变得更加强硬，”艾娜说。

但他告诫人们不要将此举解读为关系破裂。这并不意味着政府层面的接触或现有协议的终止。

他说：“它的意义在于它发出了一个政治信号，那就是一切照旧的做法已经不再可接受了。”

艾娜补充说，紧张局势的迅速重现也暴露了7月份会谈的局限性。

他说：“谴责和保证固然重要，但它们不能替代有效的警务、可信的调查、对犯罪者的起诉以及对弱势群体的持续保护。”

南非的移民辩论涉及来自非洲大陆各地的移民，尼日利亚人只是卷入其中的一个群体。

艾娜说：“这从根本上讲是南非就移民、经济不安全和国家认同等问题展开的一场更广泛的辩论。”

Toyin Adedokun/AFP/Getty Images

紧张局势也引发了关于谁应该承担经济成本的争论。

尼日利亚要求赔偿在六月暴力事件中遭受财产和企业损失的公民。但南非也提出了自己的经济要求，称将向非洲各国政府追偿遣返和驱逐本国公民的费用。

在抗议活动中，数千名外国人试图离开南非，南非当局协助办理了他们的自愿遣返手续。与此同时，政府继续遣返非法滞留人员。

萨利姆·达伍德/法新社/法新社/盖蒂图片社

仇外情绪在“彩虹之国”再次抬头。非洲各国已经忍无可忍。

然而，尼日利亚方面表示，尚未收到南非方面要求偿还这些费用的正式请求。

南非内政部告诉 CNN，他们打算通过外交渠道而不是法院来寻求赔偿。

尼日利亚和南非是非洲最具影响力的经济体和政治强国之一。

尼日利亚支持南非的反种族隔离斗争。然而，两国关系并非一直顺畅。

1995 年，时任南非总统纳尔逊·曼德拉在作家肯·萨罗-维瓦和其他八人被处决后，批评了尼日利亚军政府，导致两国关系紧张。

2012年，南非以黄热病疫苗接种证书无效为由驱逐了125名尼日利亚人，引发了另一场争端。尼日利亚随后也驱逐了部分南非公民，之后南非方面道歉。

Ihsaan Haffejee/Anadolu/Getty Images

最近，2015 年的仇外暴力事件引发了新的紧张局势，而 2019 年的另一次冲突则促使尼日利亚撤离了数百名公民，并抵制了在开普敦举行的世界经济论坛会议。

同年，在南非企业遭到报复性袭击后，南非暂时关闭了其在尼日利亚的外交机构。

这种模式已经变得很常见：南非发生的针对外国人的袭击事件会引发尼日利亚的愤怒，紧张局势升级，最终两国政府都会试图修复关系。

但反复的冲突可能会对双边关系造成超出其​​本身的后果。

艾娜表示，长期的紧张局势可能会损害商业联系，并使区域安全和经济一体化方面的合作更加困难。

他补充说：“更广泛的担忧是，两个有影响力的非洲国家之间的争端可能会破坏非洲联盟对非洲大陆团结和人员自由流动的承诺的信誉。”