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A crowd of displaced foreign nationals has heckled South African President Jacob Zuma during his visit to a makeshift shelter, as he tried to address mounting pressure to end the deadly anti-immigration attacks in the country.

In a meeting on Saturday with some 1,400 foreigners waiting for repatriation, Zuma said: “We will deploy police to every area to ensure safety.”

The crowd, however, did not take warmly to that promise and chanted, “No!” in response.

Earlier on Saturday, Zuma cancelled his trip to Indonesia to attend the Afro-Asia Summit to deal with the violence at home.

In his speech to the displaced foreigners, he said that the South African government was not chasing them away. “We’re not saying to you, ‘Go away!’” he said.

He also said that his government was committed to the safety of those foreign nationals who choose to remain in South Africa.

Zuma also handed over a cheque of about $4,100 from a local business for the upkeep of the camp. But the gesture was also met with boos from the crowd.

Even after Zuma left, local media reported that the displaced foreigners continued to protest against his visit, chanting, “Go home!”

More than 30 people have been arrested in the last 24 hours, while violence spreads to other districts of South Africa’s financial capital, Johannesburg.

Scenes of looted stores greeted Johannesburg residents on Saturday as police assist foreign nationals to safety in Alexandra, north of Johannesburg, following a second day of violence.

Overnight, looting and road blockages by anti-immigrant protesters were reported in Alexandra, Malvern, Thokoza, and Cleveland.

On Saturday, a Mozambique national, identified as Emmanuel Sithole, died of his injuries after he was attacked by men during anti-immigrant violence in Alexandra.

Lieutenant-Colonel Lungelo Dlamini, Gauteng police spokesperson, said: “We believe these are pure criminal acts. People are taking advantage of the situation and then they’re robbing small businesses.”

In the port city of Durban, meanwhile, no new incidents of violence against foreigners have been reported.

But a report from the Durban police said the body of a 58-year-old man, found dumped in Verulam north of Durban on Wednesday, has been revealed to be a foreign national who was attacked by a mob at his home in the area. The UN Refugee Agency estimates that a total of 5,000 people have been displaced in the current wave of violence.

Makeshift shelters for displaced foreigners have been set up around Durban, from which many foreigners are now preparing to leave South Africa.

According to UNHCR, some 1,400 people, mostly single men, and a few families, are being accommodated in Chatsworth, while 300 others are sheltered in Isipingo, and another 450 in Greenwood Park.

The UN Refugee Agency said, some 1,500 displaced people were moved to a new and larger site in Phoenix on Thursday.

Daniel Dunia, a Congolese national who serves as a spokesperson for the displaced foreign nationals in Isipingo, said foreigners in Durban still feel unsafe, and the numbers of the displaced continue to swell.

The South African government has reiterated its condemnation of the attacks on foreign nationals.

The South African government has come under pressure from other African states to stop the violence against immigrants in the country.

In a statement issued in Accra by Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama, the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) condemned “the barbaric, criminal and xenophobic murder of innocent African foreigners in South Africa”.

Reprisals against South Africans in neighbouring countries have, however, already affected South African businesses. South African energy giant Sasol was forced to repatriate 340 South African staff members from its Mozambican operations on Friday, over fears for their safety.

In Durban Zuma has called on religious leaders to pray for peace and friendship following the recent spate of violent attacks.

In a statement released on Saturday night, Zuma stated his belief that the majority of South Africans believe in peace, while the actions of only a minority have contributed to “sporadic” incidents of violence against foreign nationals recently.

“We humbly request our religious leaders nationwide to send out a message of peace and friendship to all our people,” the statement read. “South Africans have lived in peace with foreign nationals for years.

“We know that the majority of our people believe in human rights and peace and that they respect the dignity of all who live in our country.”

The president expressed his desire that the recent wave of xenophobic attacks be overcome through dialogue. “They know that where there are concerns and differences, these should be resolved the South African way, through dialogue, and not through violence and intimidation.

“We will work with all peace loving South Africans and foreign nationals to promote peaceful co-existence, solidarity and friendship,’’ said the President.

President Zuma cancelled a visit to Indonesia on Saturday in order to visit displaced foreign nationals in Chatsworth, as well as the community of Umlazi, both in Durban.Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba yesterday warned perpetrators of xenophobic violence would face the full might of the law.

“We want to issue a stern warning to those who lend themselves to acts of public violence. We will find you and you will be dealt with to the full might of the law,” Gigaba said at a media briefing in Pretoria.

He was addressing reporters on violence against foreign nationals, mainly in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng, that has seen at least six people killed and many displaced. Police could not confirm reports of a seventh death in Alexandra, Johannesburg yesterday morning.

Gigaba said 307 people have so far been arrested for related acts since the attacks broke out over a week ago and they would face prosecution.

Gigaba said there were “elements” who were taking advantage of the violence to plunge the country into anarchy. “Over the past few days we’ve noticed a new phenomenon where people make use of social media to instil fear in different parts of the country,” Gigaba said.

He sought to ensure the international community that South Africa was doing everything possible to stem the violence. “To the countries that continue to invest in South Africa, we want to reassure them that South Africa is a constitutional democracy governed by the rule of law,” Gigaba said. “Investors are welcome to do business. Everything is [being] done to restore peace and order. Government will enforce the laws of the country to act speedily [and] decisively on any criminal activity committed by or against a foreign national or a citizen of South Africa.” – AFP