DURBAN - "We are running from our country because of war, only to find war here in South Africa."
These were the words of a migrant who voiced her frustrations amid growing calls for the removal of undocumented foreign nationals.
On Tuesday, refugees in Durban turned to police, seeking protection from groups like March and March.
However, tensions escalated when the group refused to leave after a meeting with officials.
This saw police firing rubber bullets to disperse a crowd of foreign nationals at Durban Central police station.
READ | WATCH | Refugees march to Durban police station for protection
Chairperson of the African Diaspora Global Network, Dr Vusumuzi Sibanda, expressed concern over the events that unfolded in Durban.
He said such actions are inhuman and wrong.
“It is a very sad day, that goes down in our history because you've got people that have said we want to try and avoid confrontation with the people that have been harassing, publicly beating and threshing, at them.
“And they go to the police station where they are saying all they need is protection. And then you see the police turning on them using rubber bullets and shooting them instead of trying to resolve the impulse that is there,” he said.
The current protest has been ongoing for a while with some demonstrations targeted at businesses owned by illegal foreign nationals, which has fuelled concerns that their presence is squeezing the local economy and limiting opportunities for South African.
Sibanda said several attempts have been made to resolve the tension, but little progress has been made.
READ | Cabinet sounds alarm on fake images and videos about attacks on foreign nationals
He said that while frustrations from communities can not be ignored, people should not take matters into their own hands.
“When people take the law into their hands and do this, we then look at the leadership to say, is leadership providing the required guidance to ensure that we don't see this happening?”
KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Police spokesperson, Colonel Robert Netshiunda, said when they were notified that there was a group camping outside the station, it came as no surprise.
"Them coming to the station was easier for us because we were able to address, and they were complaining that they were victimised where they stay and do business," he said.
He said efforts to secure a place for them to stay yielded no success, as there was a scuffle with locals who stay there.
They then returned to the station.
He condemned those who decide to take matters into their own hands.
He noted fears by migrants over the call to have undocumented nationals removed from the country.
He said if one knows they are legal in the country, they should not be in fear, as the law protects them
Meanwhile, some foreign nationals have threatened to, once again, sleep outside the Durban Central Police Station until their safety can be ensured.