SA Army soldiers on border protection duties had it relatively quiet in January as far as putting the brakes on illegal immigration but had their hands full confiscating contraband and narcotics.
The Joint Operations Division of the SA National Defence Force (SANDF) reports via the Directorate Corporate Communication (DCC) that soldiers stationed along the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal borders with landlocked Lesotho cut short attempts by 64 illegal immigrants to enter South Africa without the necessary documentation as per Operation Corona standing orders. These were, according to Joint Operations, the only undocumented persons apprehended in January – a long way off the 1 850 stopped in December.
By contrast, in December soldiers patrolling all three Lesotho borders with South Africa – Eastern Cape, Free State and KwaZulu-Natal – handed 138 Basuto illegals to Department of Home Affairs (DHA) officials.
Soldiers were busier stopping contraband smugglers in January, confiscating more than R2.3 million worth of illicit goods along the South African border with Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique and Zimbabwe.
Joint Ops no longer specifies drug confiscations, listing a generic “narcotics”. This classification, if previous statistics are used as a yardstick, would see dagga from Lesotho and Mozambique topping the list. The January figure bears this out as regards Mozambique with R2.27 million worth of narcotics confiscated from smugglers entering South Africa by way of KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga.
Soldiers prevented vehicles valued at over R5 million being illegally exported to Botswana and Mozambique and were also part of successful taskings that saw 33 wanted suspects in police custody.
As always, Basuto stock farmers let their cattle have free rein to graze on South African – particularly Free State – pastureland. This illegal practice saw cattle with a value of R1.4 million impounded until fines are paid.
KwaZulu-Natal’s borders with Eswatini and Mozambique were also ignored by stock farmers with small stock (goats and sheep) worth R121 000 and cattle worth R40 000 impounded.
All told, SANDF soldiers rounded up nearly R2 million worth of illegally grazing animals in January.
An indication of how busy SANDF soldiers are on border protection duties comes from a report on 5 South African Infantry (SAI) Battalion by Staff Sergeant Joseph Tokologo Tshepiso Matlapeng, Joint Operations Tactical Headquarters Mpumalanga.
The battalion is focused on enhancing regional security, particularly around key points at Sandriver, Macadamia, and Zonstraal Military Bases. Between Christmas and New Year around the Lebombo border post, 5 SAI soldiers in conjunction with police seized 126 cartons of cigarettes valued at R12 600; impounding an Isuzu bakkie worth R 50 000 that was involved in illegal activities; recovered alcohol worth R5 240; and seized illicit goods, including clothing and accessories, worth R133 650.
Highlights recorded by 5 SAI in January included the discovery of 90 kilograms of dagga valued at R378 000; the arrest of four individuals linked to vehicle theft; and recovery of three stolen vehicles.
The battalion also demonstrated a strong commitment to community safety through rapid response efforts, including the recovery of a hijacked vehicle and multiple instances of apprehending undocumented migrants, Matlapeng reported.
