South Africa seeks migration talks after violence

South Africa called on July 30 for an Africa-wide conference on migration after weeks of deadly anti-migrant violence and tensions over undocumented foreign workers.

The foreign ministry said the meeting would revisit a decade-old African Union decision to treat migration as an issue of economic development, regional integration, peace and governance. It said the talks should also address the causes of anti-migrant sentiment and develop a continent-wide response to xenophobia, discrimination and violence.

South Africa has long attracted migrants from across the continent, but has seen recurring anti-migrant violence for nearly two decades. Protests intensified this year after vigilante groups ordered undocumented foreigners to leave by June 30.

More than 176,000 people have left South Africa in recent weeks, according to an AFP tally based on figures from African countries that have repatriated their nationals. South African police say at least four migrants have been killed, while some foreign governments say the toll is higher.

Ghana has called for an African Union debate on the violence at the next AU summit early next year, and Nigeria has also pushed for the issue to be placed on the AU agenda. South Africa said the AU executive council decided this week not to include migration on the agenda for the bloc's mid-term review meeting in Egypt in October.