Mbeki Challenges Anti-Migrant Rhetoric: “Blame the Real Culprits, Not Foreigners”

Former South African president Thabo Mbeki has criticised attempts to blame undocumented migrants for the country’s ongoing unemployment and poverty challenges, arguing that such claims distract from those genuinely responsible for the economic crisis.

Mbeki strongly rejected suggestions that undocumented foreign nationals are the main cause of the difficulties facing millions of South Africans. He described the argument as misleading and insisted that the country’s economic problems should not be blamed on migrants.

“It is very wrong, absolutely wrong, to say this crisis that we have of unemployment and poverty are caused by undocumented migrants, completely false,” Mbeki said.

He also suggested that some people directing public anger towards undocumented migrants could be protecting those who should be held accountable for South Africa’s socioeconomic challenges.

“There are people who are trying desperately hard to protect the CULPRIT, the real person who is messing up. You go and target this one,” he added.

Mbeki’s remarks come amid heated national debates about immigration, border control, joblessness and poverty. Many South Africans continue to express frustration over limited employment opportunities and pressure on public services, while some call for stricter immigration enforcement.

However, Mbeki believes that blaming undocumented migrants risks diverting attention from deeper issues, including economic management, job creation and government accountability.

His comments are likely to intensify discussions about immigration and inequality, with the former president urging South Africans to focus on the people and decisions responsible for the country’s difficulties rather than making migrants the main targets of public anger.

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