SA Government Concerned About Criminals the US Deported to Eswatini

• South Africans slammed the government after it expressed concern that the criminals deported to Eswatini had arrived
• The Eswatini government reached a deal with the United States of America to receive five convicts, individuals who the United States describes as barbaric
• The convicts' counties of origin are unlikely to receive them, and South Africans are worried about the country's safety

Tebogo Mokwena, a Briefly News current affairs journalist based in Johannesburg, South Africa, covered a range of criminal activities, including cash-in-transit heists, kidnappings, taxi violence, police investigations, police shootouts, and court cases at Daily Sun for over three years.

JOHANNESBURG — The South African government is concerned that the Kingdom of Eswatini has accepted hardened criminals who were deported from the United States of America.

According to IOL, the Department of International Relations and Cooperation said that it was deeply concerned about the profile of the criminals and the impact their presence in Eswatini might have on South Africa's national security and immigration policy.

Read also

US suspends routine visa applications for Zimbabweans

DIRCO spokesperson Chrispin Phiri said that although the Kingdom of Eswatini will work with the International Organisation for Migration to facilitate the criminals' return home, it is unlikely that the criminals would be welcomed into their countries of origin.

Who are the criminals?

The Trump administration announced that it would be sending the men, who were illegal immigrants from Laos, Yemen, Cuba, Vietnam and Jamaica. The criminals were convicted of burglary, murder, child rape and being gang members. Their countries expressly refused to take them back.

Recently, the government revealed that it spends over R11 million daily on undocumented illegal immigrant prisoners. Over 25,000 migrants have been detained in the country's correctional facilities.

What did South Africans say?

South Africans commenting on Facebook were not impressed by the government's reaction.

Owen Pobza Ngcobo said:

"Officials will always tell you they are concerned, but you won't see any action."

Read also

Fikile Mbalula says ANC won't abandon BEE and expropriation laws despite sanction threat, SA divided

Beth Biggs said:

"Nothing new here. The citizens of South Africa are not allowed to protect themselves because when they do, they get arrested. "

Mxolisi Maxwell said:

"It's concerning that countries are accepting deported individuals from the US without addressing the root causes of immigration. How sustainable are these solutions for the deportees? How does this benefit Eswatini?"

Vukile Khuzwayo said:

"Lots of dangerous prisoners escaped in Mozambique during the unrest, but the government did not raise any concern. Even today, most of these prisoners and other illegal foreigners are here in South Africa, terrorizing us, but our government is protecting them."

Abbey M Motaung said:

"South Africa is gonna be their territory to regroup."

Chaini Mareka said:

"Instead of them being worried about the impact of illegal foreigners in our country, some of them are hardcore criminals."

Public Protector denies receiving complaint from Human Rights Commission

In a related article, Briefly News reported that the Public Protector denied that the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission filed a complaint against South Africans removing illegal foreigners from public healthcare facilities.

Read also

Aaron Motsoaledi says healthcare in SA is based on clinical needs, not citizenship, Mzansi outraged

The clarification came after the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission alleged that it was in discussions with the Public Protector to resolve the issue of Zimbabweans accessing public healthcare in South Africa.

Source: Briefly News