JEFFREYS BAY – Armoured vehicles rolled through the streets of Ocean View last week, carrying soldiers to support police after anti-migrant violence erupted in the usually peaceful surfing town.

Three people were wounded when shots rang out during protests that saw 23 foreign-owned convenience stores looted in the township outside Jeffreys Bay. The coastal community has become the latest flashpoint in a nationwide campaign against undocumented migrants.

Ethiopian shopkeeper Zelalem Tesfaye (28) barely escaped with his life. “I could have died,” he said, describing how he squeezed through a small back window as looters stormed his store.

The violence followed door-to-door marches by residents demanding the expulsion of undocumented foreign nationals from the area.

Gunfire and conflicting accounts

Protesters claim armed men defending a migrant-owned spaza shop opened fire on the crowd. The shop owner denies the allegation. Police say they are investigating, while the three wounded were reportedly among the protesters and looters themselves.

Similar protests have continued across South Africa despite an unofficial June 30 deadline set by fringe groups for undocumented migrants to leave. At least four foreign nationals have been killed since late May, though some African countries report higher death tolls.

More than 150 000 people have left the country, according to figures compiled by AFP. Most were Malawians and Zimbabweans who departed through government-organised repatriation programmes.

Churches become shelters

Pastor Alfred Jongile opened his Pentecostal Impact Church in Ocean View to 26 migrants fleeing the violence. He accuses police of failing to act as tensions mounted.

“It could have been a bloodbath,” he said. “People were chased from the beach to the police station by other people with sticks.”

Weeks earlier, the South African pastor had sheltered hundreds of displaced Malawians from similar unrest elsewhere.

Zimbabwean Benson Jere (36), who works for a fibre installation company, lost everything when violence reached his door. Three men demanded money in exchange for keeping quiet about his whereabouts.

“They told me that if I gave them money, they would tell the others they hadn’t seen me,” he told AFP at the church shelter. He handed over 60 rand and fled to the beach.

When he returned two days later to his rented shack, all his belongings were gone.

“South African people: some have love, others don’t,” he said. “Some don’t want what is happening now but they are going to be told that they are standing with foreigners.”

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Neighbours turn on neighbours

Somali-born shopkeeper Muse Ismail (52), who says he is a South African citizen, stood surveying his ransacked store. Security gates lay twisted where crowbars had pried them open.

“I was told they were coming, so I left,” he said. “It was not just a few people but the whole community.”

The next day brought an unsettling return to normality. Neighbours greeted him as if nothing had happened.

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“The next day they were greeting me, ‘Hello Muse’, as if nothing happened,” he said.

Police have arrested 69 people for the looting and unrest in Ocean View. Nationwide, about 350 people have been detained for unlawful conduct, intimidation, incitement and related offences as of 8 July, according to government figures.

But no arrests have been made for the shooting, leaving residents fearful and suspicious despite a fragile calm settling over the township.

Local politician Chris Mtyaleka said many are angry that authorities have not identified who opened fire, as claims persist that armed men came to protect the shopkeepers.

“They’re forcing our community to accept the people that are shooting our people here,” he told AFP.

Outside a nearby courthouse, a small group waved signs reading “Foreigners Out” under the watchful eyes of soldiers and an anti-riot vehicle.

“There is no arrest because they want people now to be scared,” said Mtyaleka. “They want to silence the people.”

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