Border between Mozambique and South Africa

The border between South Africa (orange) and Mozambique (green) is 491 kilometers long

The smallest and youngest border crossing, Giriyondo, is located between Kruger and Limpopo National Park

Kosi Bay border crossing in the southern border section

The Pafuri border crossing between Kruger and Limpopo National Park (view towards Mozambique)

The border between the Republic of South Africa and the Republic of Mozambique is 491 kilometers long and divides into two sections around the Kingdom of Swaziland . The northern section is 410 kilometers long and runs from the border with Zimbabwe in the eastern part of the Lowveld on the edge of the Kruger National Park , along the northern section of the Lebombo Mountains and through the Lebombo plains to Swaziland. The southern section, 81 kilometers long, runs along the Lusutfu River in an almost straight line from Swaziland to the Indian Ocean .

geography

Northern border

The northern border point, the confluence of the Limpopo and Luvuvhu rivers , forms a triangle between the state borders of Mozambique, South Africa and Zimbabwe and bears the name Crooks' Corner . From there the border - crossing the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park - goes south in a straight line to the Shingwedzi River , from there in several arcs to the Lepelle River . From there, the border also forms the eastern border of the Kruger National Park , it also crosses the Sabie and Komati rivers . It ends at the border triangle with Swaziland, at the so-called Mpundweni Beacon near Namaacha .

Southern limit

The southern border begins at the triangle with Swaziland (Abercorn Drift) on the Lusutfu River (later called Maputo ) and follows this river to the tributary of the Pongola . From there, the border runs in a straight line (roughly along the southern latitude 26 ° 52 ') to the Indian Ocean on Monte Ouro, a few meters south of the small town of Ponta do Ouro .

Border crossings

There are officially four border crossings between the two states, three of them in the northern section and one in the southern section. The most important border crossing is the Lebombo / Ressano García crossing, where the national roads N4 and EN4 connect the two countries. The Pretoria – Maputo railway line crosses the border in its vicinity.

Mozambique		South Africa		Remarks	Coordinates
Street	Border crossing	Street	Border crossing	Remarks	Coordinates
Northern section
N222	Pafúri	S63	Pafuri Border Post	Border crossing in Mozambique's Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park , limited opening times	22 ° 26 ′ 56.4 " S , 31 ° 18 ′ 56.5" E-22.449 31.3157
		H15	Giriyondo	Giriyondo border crossing between Kruger National Park and Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park , limited opening times	23 ° 35 '2.2 " S , 31 ° 39" 36.1 " E-23.583944 31.660037
EN4	Ressano Garcia	N4	Komatipoort , Lebombo Border Control	large and modern border crossing, international freight handling and control of passenger traffic	25 ° 26 ′ 35.2 ″ S , 31 ° 59 ′ 12.1 ″ E-25.4431 31.9867
Southern section
R803	Ponta do Ouro	R22	Kosi Bay Border Control	Border crossing from the South African Kosy Bay Nature Reserve , limited opening times	26 ° 51 ′ 51.5 " S , 32 ° 49 ′ 45.5" O-26.8643 32.8293

history

Events

The signing of the Nkomati Agreement , a peace agreement between Mozambique and the Republic of South Africa signed on March 16, 1984 , took place on the sandbanks of the Nkomati River, which runs near Komatipoort , on the joint border between the two countries. For this purpose the President Samora Machel and the Prime Minister Pieter Willem Botha as well as other international and economic representatives met at this location .

In January 1992, a FRELIMO military operation against RENAMO was carried out south of Maputo and close to the common border on the Mozambican side . An airborne SADF exercise is said to have been started from Komatipoort on the South African side , during which chemical-biological weapons are said to have been used for tests. As a supposed consequence of this action, which was described as a training measure, FRELIMO soldiers died and some had to be hospitalized. The incident, known as the Mozambique incident , is listed in a report by former SADF chief of staff Pierre Steyn, which he wrote on behalf of President Frederik Willem de Klerk to investigate military intelligence activities. The incident was later investigated by groups of scientists from South Africa, Mozambique, Switzerland, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United Nations. There was no uniform and completely reliable result.

Flows of refugees and border security with an electric fence

In the course of the Mozambican civil war , the conflict between RENAMO and FRELIMO that lasted from 1977 to 1992 , zones along the border on the Mozambican side were provided with landmines . Despite this, thousands of Mozambican refugees crossed the bilateral border without entry permits and looked for protection, peace and quiet and work opportunities in South Africa. South Africa tolerated irregular immigration to a certain extent if the refugees found shelter in the homelands Gazankulu , KaNgwane , Lebowa or KwaZulu .

In the second half of the 1980s, the number of border crossings assumed a problematic dimension for both countries. Between 1983 and 1986, 260,000 people had already crossed this border. In addition, MK fighters and other guerrilla groups came to South Africa from neighboring countries and attacked civilian and military targets in the hinterland of the border . The government in Pretoria decided despite existing military and paramilitary border patrol activities for the construction of a 3.5 kV - electric fence on the boundary portion between Komatipoort and immediately north of Swaziland subsequent Homeland Kangwane. The first, 25-kilometer-long fence section of this construction was made from two outer fences, each 2.5-meter-high, between which the third, electrified fence ran. This construction was chosen to protect people and animals from accidental electric shock . On the South African side, a driveway for border guards was built parallel to the fence. The construction work cost 6.7 million rand . The fence was equipped with warning signs at a distance of 50 meters on both sides, with which the danger to life was indicated by symbols and the word "danger" in four languages ( Portuguese , Shangaan , Afrikaans and English ).

In response to a parliamentary request in September 1986, then Defense Minister Magnus Malan announced that a total of two Mozambicans had died from contact with the electric fence in August 1986. According to estimates by the Johannesburg- based Center for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation, at least 100 people died as a result of the drop in the previously fatal current values in 1990 .

There was a domestic protest against this type of border fortification in September 1989 by the South African Catholic Bishops' Conference . Its chairman, Bishop Wilfrid Fox Napier , criticized the inhumane South African border protection policy, which had resulted in hundreds of deaths from targeted shots at refugees even before the electric fence was erected. It was also called for the removal of the landmines and the stopping of the forced repatriation of around 3,500 people a month to the neighboring Mozambican civil war area and to Swaziland. The Bishops' Conference called on the South African government to immediately start negotiations with the UN , in particular with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees , to apply the international refugee status in such cases according to UN standards to the group of people concerned.

Operation Corona

During Lindiwe Sisulu's tenure as South African Defense Minister (2009 to 2012), the country returned to increased guarding of the external border with the help of the army. The reason for this was the rise in cross-border crime. During the political preparatory phase, the minister and members of parliament carried out a border inspection in the regions of Musina ( border with Zimbabwe ), Macadamia and Muzi . The destruction of the existing border fence by the illegal entry of immigrants into South Africa became evident. The first units of the SANDF for the purpose of border security were mobilized in May 2010. When the operation began, there were close cooperation relationships with Operation Kgwele , which served the security of South Africa during the 2010 World Cup . According to section 18 of the Defense Act of 2002 ( Act No. 42/2002 ), border security is legitimized by the army.

Under the name Operation Corona , troops of the 1st Parachute Regiment were first relocated from Bloemfontein to particularly endangered border sections. Army Commander-in-Chief Solly Shoke said the armed forces will now help defend the integrity and sovereignty of the country at the external borders. From the start of the operation, the focus of the border security activities was on the border with Mozambique.

In 2011, the South African Ministry of Defense estimated a budget of 324.6 million rand for the expansion of security measures towards Mozambique . At this point the Army had relocated three infantry companies, a platoon of engineers and a headquarters unit to the South African-Mozambican border. Brigadier General Koos Liebenberg estimated the number of troops needed to be much higher. For effective technical support, the Department of Defense approved the use of a military surveillance system with night vision and radar equipment ( Project Cytoon ).

Due to the increasing use of personnel and technology, more and more illegal activities were uncovered in the course of Operation Corona ; in addition to irregular immigration, this included the smuggling of cigarettes and narcotics. The observed variety of contraband continued to grow; clothing, alcohol, livestock, firearms, stolen cars and cannabis were confiscated. In December 2014, the authorities involved in securing the border detained 6,000 people from Mozambique without valid entry documents.