CURRENTLY ON AIR ⇒
  • Highlights of the Days Programmes
    Tuesday, 10:05 pm - 4:00 am
    [ - ]

feedback@radioislam.org.za

logo


((( Listen Live )))))
Radio Islam Logo


Operation Dudula: Questions raised about government’s inaction amid group’s plans to meet with Health Minister

13 August 2025 | 11:45 CAT
1-minute read

Image: The Guardian

South Africa faces a deepening crisis as Operation Dudula, an anti-immigrant group, continues its campaign to deny undocumented migrants access to public healthcare—a move that defies constitutional protections and threatens public health integrity.

Loren Landau, Professor of Migration and Development at the University of Oxford and Research Professor at Wits’ African Centre for Migration and Society, in an interview on Radio Islam International, warned that this isn’t grassroots protest—it’s a creeping institutionalisation of xenophobia. He observed that Operation Dudula has effectively started “running intake at hospitals,” a development fraught with legal and ethical peril.

Despite mounting concern, the group has confirmed a scheduled meeting with Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi to discuss their self-appointed oversight of healthcare access.

Yet, their actions fly in the face of South African law: anyone with a life-threatening condition—or even less acute, essential medical needs—cannot be denied treatment, regardless of documentation status.

As Professor Landau stated, “We’re all safer if our neighbor is getting the treatment … deserves and is constitutionally entitled to.”

Médecins Sans Frontières has previously intervened when Operation Dudula supporters blocked clinic access, reaffirming that healthcare is a basic human right enshrined in the constitution.

The political and economic motivations behind Operation Dudula’s actions extend beyond surface-level anti-immigrant rhetoric.

“It is a diversion, it does create money for people clearly and it’s helping to strengthen the sort of political entities that they seem to be linked to,” Professor Landou said.

Professor Landau urged immediate action: not token condemnation, but the arrest and prosecution of group leaders and any healthcare workers who enable or condone these discriminatory acts—a necessary step to uphold both public safety and constitutional values.

Listen to the full interview on Sabaahul Muslim with Muallimah Annisa Essack.

ADVERTISE HERE

Prime Spot!!!

Contact:
advertisingadmin@radioislam.co.za 

Related Articles

The Africa Report

The Africa Report

2 September 2025 | 11:05 CAT 3-minute read Uganda’s Deal with the US, Botswana’s Health Crisis, and Ethiopia’s Fragile Peace Uganda’s decision to accept asylum seekers deported from the United States has stirred anger at home, where citizens are questioning whether...

read more
Protection Orders No Deterrent For GBV

Protection Orders No Deterrent For GBV

Rabia Mayet | rabiamayet@radioislam.co.za 02 September 2025 3-minute read The surge in gender-based violence despite victims of femicide attaining protection orders against abusive partners is on the rise. The story of a woman who was allegedly wounded by her...

read more
The Palestine Report

The Palestine Report

1 September 2025 | 13:14 CAT 3-minute read In this week’s Palestine Report, Moulana Ebrahim Moosa discussed Israel’s claims of assassinating Abu Ubaidah, its brutal urban warfare on Gaza City, shifts in global public opinion—particularly among US youth—and mounting...

read more
The Debrief Report

The Debrief Report

1 September 2025 | 11:52 CAT 2-minute read South African Activists Join Global Flotilla to Break Gaza Siege South African activists have joined an international flotilla that set sail from Barcelona yesterday. It is heading to Tunisia, where it will be joined by more...

read more

Subscribe to our Newsletter

0 Comments