Urgent Statement on Fake Poster Circulating Online

10 June 2026
Abahlali baseMjondolo statement

URGENT STATEMENT ON FAKE POSTER CIRCULATING ONLINE

Abahlali baseMjondolo are not Xenophobic!

We note with concern a fake and xenophobic post currently circulating on WhatsApp and Facebook that falsely claims to have been issued by our movement, Abahlali baseMjondolo.

The post is fake. It is disinformation designed to incite hatred and violence. Those who created and shared this post must immediately cease circulating fake information. Spreading false content that targets migrants puts lives at risk and violates the law. We call on everyone who received this fake post to delete it and not to forward it.

Abahlali baseMjondolo has always rejected xenophobia and ethnic politics and we are NOT part of any anti-migrant or xenophobic movement that is currently attacking migrants. We believe in Ubuntu and we will remain the movement that represents all poor and marginalised people in our country and will defend and uphold the dignity of all African people. Abahlali baseMjondolo is a movement of shack dwellers founded on the foundation of ubuntu and the principle that every human life matters. We organise against poverty, evictions, and poor service delivery and for land, housing and dignity for all. We do not organise against our neighbours based on nationality, language, or name.

We will be taking legal action against those who made and distributed this post which incites violence and deliberately tarnishes our name. Defamation, hate speech, and incitement to violence are criminal offenses and we have instructed our legal team to identify the originators and distributors of this fake content and to pursue all civil and criminal remedies available.

Xenophobia will not fix broken toilets, unemployment, or housing. It will not ensure a fair distribution of land and wealth. It will not restore the dignity of the oppressed. Xenophobia will lead to the loss of more lives like we saw in Bhambayi in the late 1980s and early 1990s. We refuse to allow the name of our organisation to be misused for political opportunism ahead of the local government elections.

We urge communities to verify information before sharing and to defend each other – South Africans and migrants – against violence.

A person is a person wherever they may find themselves. A neighbour is a neighbour and a comrade is a comrade wherever they may come from.

Unyawo Alunampumulo.

Thapelo Mohapi 084 576 5117
Nkululeko Ketelo 078 330 6246
Sinenhlanhla Mcanyana 073 832 3331