Mary Papayya

Mary Papayya

eThekwini Municipality officials yesterday heaped praise and thanked all faith-based organisations, non-governmental organisations and all citizens who have contributed to the welfare of refugees in the city.

Churches, police stations and communities have banded together to provide nearly 30 centres to accommodate thousands of displaced foreign nationals in the city.

City manager Michael Sutcliffe said it was important for all stakeholders in the city to continue working together for the benefit of all foreign nationals affected by the recent violence.

"We have realised that there is much room for improvement in clearly defining the roles of all partners in acting decisively and in coordinating our efforts.

"At the same time, we must work together to remove all criminals from our communities - whether they are South African or foreign."

He said the city had worked very closely with the South African Police Service to put in place early warning and rapid response systems to avert and rapidly stamp out any further attacks on foreign nationals.

"The political leadership of the city has also mobilised all councillors and officials to work with communities to deal with crime and start the process of reintegrating people back into the communities from where they fled."