The group arrived at the Sherwood Community Centre after fleeing escalating tensions in the province’s Pietermaritzburg, where police confirmed that a 29-year-old foreign national was killed in a mob attack at the Jika Joe informal settlement.
Authorities said the violence prompted several foreign nationals to seek refuge at a nearby mosque before relocation efforts began. Those affected have since been moved to Durban’s central district, where officials are conducting a verification process of undocumented migrants ahead of repatriation to Malawi.
The eThekwini Municipality has started transferring some displaced individuals from Sherwood to an additional temporary site near North Beach in an effort to ease overcrowding at the initial shelter.
The relocation comes amid growing pressure on local facilities, as the number of displaced migrants continues to rise. Officials say the process is part of broader emergency measures aimed at stabilising the situation and ensuring basic support for those affected.
Representative of the Malawian High Commission Muft Sulaimana said conditions on the ground remain challenging, with ongoing efforts to expand accommodation capacity. “It was hard for some of them we received here, while others could not manage to come,” Sulaimana said.
Sulaimana said attempts to establish additional temporary infrastructure have faced obstacles, including delays in securing approval for emergency arrangements. “This morning we tried to put up a tent, but the municipality is still refusing for now,” Sulaimana said.
Sulaimana added that officials are engaging authorities to open an additional centre in Pietermaritzburg to accommodate displaced Malawians who are unable to travel to Durban. “We do not yet know the full situation there, but we are lobbying for another centre,” Sulaimana said.
–SABC/ChannelAfrica–
