Hundreds undocumented foreign nationals arrested at Beitbridge Border Post
- Global News
NMMABUNDA
- 5 minutes read
Home Affairs officials together with police and soldiers have arrested hundreds of undocumented foreign nationals at the Beitbridge Border Post at Musina in Limpopo. There has been a strong police presence at the port of entry since the start of the Easter weekend.
With large numbers of holidaymakers travelling to various destinations following the long Easter weekend, some undocumented foreign nationals are also trying to cross into the country illegally through the Beitbridge Border Post.
Most of the arrested people are from Zimbabwe as well as other SADC countries. Some illegal border jumpers could be seen in the distance crossing the border and assisting others to carry their luggage into Zimbabwe through the Limpopo River.
Home Affairs Minister, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, was at the country’s busiest border post, to monitor the situation. Motsoaledi says over 700 illegal migrants have been arrested at Beitbridge Border Post in Musina in Limpopo.
Minister Aaron Motsoaledi: “From the 11th of April until today, which is the whole week – more than 700 people, who were trying to cross illegally, have been arrested and sent back. And that work of arrest is still continuinup to today.”
Minister Motsoaledi says the safety campaign, which started last week, will continue throughout this week to curb illegal crossings.
Minister Motsoaledi: We have deployed officials here at the boarder, but by chance there might be some people who escape and those one are caught at two road blocks. There’s a road block just when you enter Musina and there’s a roadblock 30 kilometres outside Musina.
Meanwhile, the Border Management Authority’s Commissioner, Dr Mike Masiapato, has said that the department is working tirelessly to strengthen the border management.
Dr Masiapato: All the infrastructure in the land borders, are going to be transferred from the Public Works into Border Management Authority. So at that point, we’re going to start taking over this kind of responsibilities in terms of maintaining all the infrastructure.
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Dr Masiapato says the department’s Border Management Authority will deploy 200 newly-appointed guards to the border between South Africa and Zimbabwe, to work with the members of the SANDF on a 24-hour basis to stop illegal border crossings.
