SA brings back citizens lured into Russia conflict

The ANC in KwaZulu-Natal has commended President Cyril Ramaphosa for striking a deal with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin for the return of South Africans who were dragged into the frontline of the deadly conflict between Russia and Ukraine under the pretext that they were being recruited for high-paying jobs in Russia. Four of the 17 South Africans who fell for the alleged scam were repatriated to South Africa on Wednesday. The majority of those recruited to fight in the Russia-Ukraine conflict are from KwaZulu-Natal.

ANC provincial spokesperson Fanle Sibisi condemned the individuals behind the alleged recruitment scam, which allegedly involves former president Jacob Zuma’s daughter Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla. Zuma-Sambudla last year resigned as an MK Party MP amid a police investigation into the alleged illegal recruitment of South Africans. The ANC views this matter with the utmost seriousness.

It is both chilling and wholly unacceptable that South African citizens could be manipulated and exploited in such a manner, reduced, as reports suggest, to disposable participants in a brutal war not of their making. “The ANC commends the Department of International Relations and Co-operation, and all diplomatic partners involved in this successful repatriation effort. “South Africa is a caring nation, and the ANC remains resolute that no citizen should ever be abandoned to the horrors of war through deception and exploitation.

[paywall]

“The ANC further emphasises that, in terms of South Africa’s Foreign Military Assistance Act of 1998, participation in foreign military activity without authorisation is unlawful. “This incident must serve as a stark warning against criminal recruitment networks that prey on unemployment, vulnerability and false promises of opportunity abroad,” he said.

[/paywall]