Pretoria:President Cyril Ramaphosa has deployed 510 members of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) to KwaZulu-Natal. This deployment aims to support the South African Police Service (SAPS) in maintaining law and order following violence linked to misinformation about a Constitutional Court judgment concerning the Refugee Act.
According to South African Government News Agency, President Ramaphosa informed the Speaker of the National Assembly, Thoko Didiza, and the Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces, Refilwe Mtsweni-Tsipane, about his decision to deploy the army. The SANDF will assist SAPS in maintaining order, particularly in response to violent actions stemming from misinformation regarding the Constitutional Court's ruling on the Refugee Act. The SANDF will be on standby to support the police as necessary.
Earlier in October, police arrested 30 individuals—25 in KwaZulu-Natal and five in Gauteng—in connection with public violence and unlawful protests. These incidents were fueled by claims that the recent Constitutional Court ruling on asylum applications grants blanket amnesty to undocumented foreign nationals, claims the government has denied.
The SANDF deployment, authorized under section 201(2)(a) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa 1996, will last from October 9 until November 30, 2026. The expected expenditure for this deployment is R34,082,720.