Informal traders plying their trade at the iconic Walter Sisulu Square have called upon the government to address the challenges posed by illegal immigration.
Two days before the self-imposed June 30 deadline for illegal immigrants to leave South Africa, informal traders plying their trade at the iconic Walter Sisulu Square have called upon the government to address the challenges posed by illegal immigration, linking it directly to the scarcity of jobs and business opportunities in their community.
On Sunday, ahead of the march to Moroka Police Station, 76-year-old Sophie Mbengwa, a seasoned trader with more than five decades of experience, painfully told her story of being arrested on the same day she gave birth to her second daughter, who has since become her business partner selling fruits and vegetables.
"We have fought for a long time to be here. It was a painful day for me on May 25, 1985, when I had to give birth to my second-born child, who is now working alongside me. When people say we are lazy as South Africans. What are they talking about, as I have raised nine children while working as an informal trader? It is an insult, really, to be told we are lazy."
Some stores around the iconic Walter Sisulu Square remained closed on Sunday as Soweto residents took their fight to the street ahead of the June 30 deadline.
