Zuma Says Foreigners Won’t Be Forced Out Despite Claiming Land Belongs to South Africans

Former president Jacob Zuma spoke to a packed MK Party rally on Saturday, and his remarks quickly drew mixed reactions across the country. In front of thousands of supporters, he separated the issue of land ownership from the issue of migration, two subjects that have long divided South Africans.

Zuma said his party has no plan to force out foreign nationals who have made their lives in South Africa over many years. “We will not chase them away,” he told the crowd, pointing to how long many of them have lived in the country. He also stressed that black South Africans did not travel by aircraft to take over other people’s lands, and said the land they live on belongs to them through birth and history.

MK Party spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndhlela said the remarks reflect the party’s official position. “Our position has always been rooted in dignity, not xenophobia,” he said. At the time of publication, the party had not released a written policy on migration. Opposition parties, including the DA, called for more clarity on which groups Zuma’s assurance covers.

The speech comes at a tense time in several Gauteng townships. Local traders and foreign-owned spaza shops have clashed repeatedly over trading permits and claims that prices are being undercut. Community groups in areas such as Tembisa and Katlehong have asked government more than once to tighten the rules. They argue that informal trade now favours non-citizens who have outside funding.

During the rally, a woman near the front, wearing an MK Party beret and holding a homemade placard that read “Mzansi First”, cried openly when Zuma spoke about the history of dispossession. People around her responded with raised fists and ululation.

It remains unclear how the MK Party plans to balance its welcoming stance toward settled migrants with the anger felt in many communities. It is also not known whether a Zuma-led government would introduce formal residency protections or leave communities to work out their relationships without new laws. Those questions were still unanswered when supporters left the rally.

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