The National Sea Rescue Institute and the Hermanus Animal Welfare Society have rescued a dog trapped on a steep cliff face at Dreunkrans in Hermanus.

According to NSRI Hermanus station commander Edrich Kotze, rescue crews were activated shortly after 9:30 am on Thursday, 21 May, after a local resident heard a dog barking while walking along the cliff path. On closer inspection, the woman spotted the animal stranded on a narrow ledge below the path and alerted authorities.

Kotze, who lives nearby, responded to assess the situation before NSRI crews and an animal welfare officer from HAWS were dispatched to the scene.

Rescuers negotiated difficult and steep terrain to reach the dog in a coordinated operation. The animal was safely brought back up the cliff and handed into the care of HAWS at around 10:26 am.

The mixed-breed male dog was not injured and appeared to be healthy. He has since been transported to HAWS for care and rehabilitation while efforts continue to trace his owners.

NSRI commended the local Good Samaritan who raised the alarm, as well as the assistance provided by HAWS during the rescue operation.

Many civil organisations in Cape Town have rejected the March-and-March movement ahead of a local protest calling for the removal of undocumented immigrants.  

The movement has been active in other parts of the country, most recently in Durban, with scores of people gathering to protest and shut down businesses owned by foreign nationals. It says it is “advocating for stronger immigration enforcement and protecting opportunities for South African citizens”. 

WATCH: Tensions flare outside Durban’s Diakonia Centre as March and March founder Jacinta Ngobese Zuma arrives, while foreign nationals seek protection from local threats.
Video by Mbali Dlungwana.#DiakoniaCentre #DurbanUnrest #RefugeeProtection pic.twitter.com/T8GKQcRIwe

— Daily Sun (@dailysunsa) May 21, 2026

A cluster of the movement in Cape Town has planned a march for Saturday from Bellville to Parow. 

However, a coalition of 48 organisations in the city has signed a statement in which they accuse March-and-March of xenophobia by exploiting public frustration. 

In the statement released on Thursday, the organisations said the movement wanted to bring “its politics of fear and chaos to Cape Town”. The signatories (which the letter said included residents, workers, organisations, migrants, refugees, activists, faith communities, students, and community members) said they rejected them completely. 

“March and March pretends to be a large civic movement, and pretends to speak for ordinary people, while directing anger downward, toward migrants, refugees, street traders, undocumented workers, and the poor, instead of toward the systems and institutions actually responsible for misery in this country. They take real pain and misdirect it into xenophobia,” read the groups’ collective statement.  

The coalition further rejected claims that migrants were responsible for unemployment, failing services and inequality, and accused March-and-March of being “funded and exploited by opportunist political parties”. 

It warns that the movement’s rhetoric could result in escalated tensions in vulnerable communities. 

“March and March pretends to oppose only undocumented migration, but in practice it fuels hostility and violence toward migrants as a whole, especially poor African migrants. It fuels tribalism. Even Home Affairs has acknowledged serious backlogs in processing asylum, refugee, and other permits. Yet March and March creates an atmosphere in which people are treated as criminals simply because they were born somewhere else. It is xenophobic and it is anti-black, no matter how carefully it is branded and packaged.” 

It further criticised what they described as anti-immigrant language, arguing that phrases such as “citizens first” and “illegal foreigners” are masked xenophobic politics. 

ALSO READ: SABC/March and March leader rejects xenophobia allegations

Among the organisations opposing the march are Kopanang Africa Against Xenophobia, Consortium for Refugees and Migrants in South Africa, Ndifuna Ukwazi, Equal Education Law Centre, Palestine Solidarity Campaign and the Sex Workers Education and Advocacy Taskforce. The coalition called on police and public officials to act responsibly to prevent intimidation and “xenophobic violence” during the planned protest. 

“Cape Town and South Africa do not belong to right-wing nationalists, vigilantes, predatory politicians, or people trying to build movements around exclusion and scapegoating. We stand with migrants, refugees, undocumented people, and all those targeted by xenophobic politics. We stand for solidarity across borders and against every attempt to turn vulnerable people into enemies.” 

ALSO READ: “Compliance check” and crackdown on illegal immigrants in CPT CBD – Smile 90.4FM

*This article has been updated to correct the number of organisations involved from 23 to the accurate number of 48. 

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Fear and chaos unfolded in Canelands, KwaZulu-Natal, this morning when a school transport vehicle carrying dozens of children overturned after a collision with a delivery truck.

According to reports, the accident occurred at the corner of New Glasgow Road and Vincent Dickenson Road. It is believed the driver of the scholar transport vehicle collided with the truck before losing control and overturning.

Reaction Unit South Africa (RUSA) confirmed that 21 learners between the ages of five and 15 were travelling in the vehicle at the time of the crash.

“Nineteen pupils sustained minor injuries to their hands while several others complained of body pain. The learners are in Grades 2 to 10,” RUSA said.