…President Says Immigration Enforcement Cannot Justify Violence Against Africans
…Nigeria Urges AU to Guarantee Safety, Dignity of Africans Across Continent
Daud Olatunji
President Bola Tinubu has intensified Nigeria’s diplomatic campaign against recurring xenophobic and Afrophobic attacks in South Africa, urging the African Union to take decisive action to protect Nigerians and other African nationals from violence, harassment and discrimination.
Tinubu made the call through Vice President Kashim Shettima, who delivered the President’s message on Sunday at the 21st Extraordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union in Luanda, Angola.
The President urged the continental body to place the recurring attacks on African migrants in South Africa on the agenda of its 40th Ordinary Session scheduled for January 2027.
He warned that continued attacks on fellow Africans were eroding the principles of African solidarity, unity and peaceful coexistence.
Tinubu said Nigeria recognised South Africa’s sovereign right to regulate migration and enforce its immigration laws but stressed that such powers could not be used to justify violence against African nationals.
“Nigeria wishes to express its concern over the recurring xenophobic and Afrophobic attacks against Africans and other nationalities in South Africa,” the President said in his message delivered by Shettima.
He added, “While recognising South Africa’s sovereign right to enforce its immigration laws and acknowledging its contributions to the continent, Nigeria stresses that such attacks undermine African solidarity, unity and peaceful coexistence, and require urgent collective action.”
The President consequently called on the AU Assembly to reaffirm its responsibility to guarantee the security, protection and dignity of Africans wherever they live on the continent.
He urged African leaders to strengthen measures against xenophobia and Afrophobia and ensure that the issue received formal consideration at the next ordinary AU summit.
“It is on this note that Nigeria calls on this August Assembly to reaffirm its commitment to the safety, protection, and dignity of all African nationals, strengthening efforts to combat xenophobia and Afrophobia and therefore place the matter on the agenda of the upcoming 40th Ordinary Session of the AU Assembly, scheduled for January 2027, for consideration and appropriate action,” Tinubu said.
…Nigeria pushes diplomacy
The President’s latest intervention represents an intensification of Nigeria’s efforts to secure a continent-wide response to attacks against African migrants in South Africa.
The move comes about six weeks after Tinubu raised concerns over the issue before West African leaders and called for a united response to xenophobic attacks.
Tinubu, however, cautioned against confrontation as the sole response to the crisis, advocating dialogue, preventive diplomacy and collective action by African countries.
“Nigeria emphasises that dialogue, preventive diplomacy, and collective action are essential to advancing African unity and solidarity,” he said.
The President’s intervention comes amid renewed anti-immigrant agitation in South Africa, where Nigerians and nationals of other African countries have faced threats, harassment and attacks.
The hostility has been fuelled partly by campaigns blaming foreign nationals for unemployment, crime and pressure on public services in the country.
Human Rights Watch reported in May that recent anti-immigrant activities had involved vigilante groups, including Operation Dudula and March and March.
The rights organisation also reported instances in which foreign nationals were prevented from accessing public healthcare and education facilities.
Nigeria’s renewed appeal to the AU seeks to elevate the issue from a recurring bilateral concern between Abuja and Pretoria to a continental challenge requiring a coordinated African response.
For the Tinubu administration, the protection of Nigerians abroad remains a key diplomatic concern, while the Federal Government is also advocating dialogue and preventive diplomacy as a means of addressing migration-related tensions.
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