Operation Dudula women released on warning after targeting migrants at Soweto Clinic
Three women from the controversial anti-migrant group Operation Dudula who were arrested for blocking access to a healthcare facility in Soweto have since been released on a warning.
The women, aged between 49 and 60, appeared in the Orlando Magistrate’s Court in Gauteng on Monday after the incident at the Lilian Ngoyi Clinic in Diepkloof last Thursday.
The women allegedly forcefully entered the maternity ward of the clinic and proceeded to demand that patients produce their identity documents as proof of nationality.
The alleged aggressive questioning disrupted medical services and caused significant distress among patients and healthcare workers alike.
In response to the escalating situation, clinic staff and patients took the drastic step of locking the women inside one of the labour wards. Police were then called to the scene to intervene.
Gauteng police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Mavela Masondo confirmed the arrest of the three suspects.
According to Masondo, they had been charged with contravening the National Health Act, public violence, and other related offences.
Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has raised alarm over what it calls a ‘distressing and unacceptable’ crisis in South Africa’s public healthcare system, where anti-immigrant groups are blocking foreign nationals, many of them pregnant women or patients with chronic illnesses, from receiving treatment.
“This conduct is highly unacceptable,” said MSF spokesperson Jane Rabothata. “Defaulting HIV treatment can have serious complications for individuals and create a broader public health concern.”
MSF emphasised that denying basic or emergency healthcare to migrants risks the spread of communicable diseases such as tuberculosis, HIV, and COVID-19, conditions that do not respect borders or legal status. Untreated illnesses, they warn, could spark outbreaks, increase treatment costs, and further burden the system.
IOL News