It was not an official government order. But on Monday, June 30, it felt like one on the streets.
Thousands of South Africans poured out in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban, Pietermaritzburg and Soweto. They were marching to enforce a date that has been trending for weeks — June 30, the unofficial deadline set by anti-immigrant groups for undocumented foreigners to leave the country.
The crowds were loud, organised, and angry. Many carried placards demanding that government "take back the country." In Johannesburg's CBD, videos showed long lines of protesters chanting as they moved past shuttered shops. In Cape Town, Reuters photographers captured marchers holding South African flags on the very day of the deadline.
Police were ready. Officers in riot gear lined major routes in Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape. Authorities said the heavy deployment was to stop a repeat of past xenophobic violence. They had good reason to worry the weeks leading up to June 30 had already claimed four lives and forced thousands of foreign nationals to flee their homes.
Who set the deadline? Not the state. It was a loose coalition of minor political parties and citizen-led groups, popularly known as the "March and March" movement. They have been holding weekly pickets for months, arguing that undocumented migrants take jobs, accept lower wages, and drive crime in a country battling over 30% unemployment.
The pressure worked, at least in fear. By Tuesday morning, thousands of African migrants Nigerians, Ghanaians, Zimbabweans, Congolese had already left townships or crossed borders. In Durban, members of the Zulu Amabutho regiment joined the march, chanting as families locked their shops. In several cities, foreign-owned spaza shops stayed closed.
President Cyril Ramaphosa pushed back a day earlier. In a national address, he warned against vigilantes exploiting public frustration and said only the state can enforce immigration law. The police also debunked a viral poster carrying the national coat of arms that falsely claimed all "illegal foreigners" must leave by June 30. They called it fake and misleading.
Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber convened emergency meetings with security chiefs. He insisted government was acting pointing to R1-billion in recent drug seizures and new border technology — but admitted the mood on the ground was tense.
For migrants, the day was about survival, not politics. In Gansbaai and parts of Johannesburg, more than 200 foreigners sought shelter in churches and community halls. Many told local reporters they were leaving voluntarily, not because of law, but because of fear. "I hope through these demonstrations our president will hear our cries," one protester in Pietermaritzburg told AFP, summing up the other side's frustration.
By evening, police said the marches had largely stayed peaceful, avoiding the widespread looting seen in July 2021. But the organisers are not done. Their leaders vowed to return to the streets every week until government meets their demand for mass deportations.
June 30 has passed. The deadline was never legal. But for thousands of foreigners still in South Africa, and for the communities watching them leave, the impact is very real.
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