TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - More than 1,000 Nigerians in South Africa have registered for a program to voluntarily return home after a spate of attacks targeting migrants, Nigeria's Foreign Ministry announced on Friday.
Screening is currently underway by the Nigerian Foreign Ministry and South African immigration officials to determine who is eligible for the program.
South African authorities have agreed to waive penalties for visa violations such as overstays. However, individuals facing criminal charges will not be eligible to leave the country.
"Total figure not out yet," said Kimiebi Ebienfa, a spokesperson for Nigeria's Foreign Ministry. "We are expecting over a thousand persons."
Why are African migrants fleeing South Africa?
South Africa has seen a new surge in protests against undocumented migrants this year. Some of those protests have turned violent.
Victims have described aggressive mobs walking door-to-door and demanding that African migrants leave the country.
Protesters accuse African migrants of committing crimes and taking jobs — claims that are exacerbated by high unemployment, poverty and ineffective policing. Analysts and rights groups argue this is scapegoating.
One group has even issued an ultimatum calling for undocumented migrants to be expelled by June 30, prompting fears of further violence.
In one incident in May, five Ethiopian migrants were reportedly killed in Johannesburg. In June, Mozambique said five of its nationals were killed amid anti-immigrant violence in Western Cape.
South African officials have condemned the violence and promised to crack down on "xenophobic acts."
African countries take action to protect citizens
Ghana repatriated around 300 people on a flight to Accra last month.
Hundreds more Ghanaians are set to follow suit.
Ethiopia is also preparing to repatriate its citizens, Ebienfa said.
Other countries including Kenya, Lesotho and Zimbabwe have also urged their citizens to exercise caution in South Africa.
South Africa is home to over three million foreigners, making up some 5.1% of the population, according to the statistics agency. Over 63% hail from countries in the 16-member Southern African Development Community (SADC) bloc.
The country has grappled with waves of xenophobic violence, the most significant being in May 2008, when at least 62 people were killed, more than 670 injured and over 100,000 displaced in violence that erupted in the Alexandra township near Johannesburg before spreading across the country.
Many of the victims were migrants from Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Malawi and Somalia.
Read: Nigeria Moves to Repatriate 1,000 Citizens from South Africa
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