The violence across townships in Johannesburg continues to escalate with foreigners loosing their lives and some being seriously injured. It is said that the attacks are xenophobia related with South Africans calling upon foreigners to leave the country. Many of the foreigners, mainly Zimbabweans, Malawians and Mozambique nationals have been the victims of these attacks. Over the weekend, many shops in central Johannesburg that are owned by foreigners were looted. This now begs to ask the question, are these attacks strictly xenophobia related or there is another motive for these attacks?
Why all of a sudden are these attacks occurring? Many foreigners have been living side by side with South Africans in South Africa with very few problems but now all of a sudden there is a problem. Yes, more and more foreigners are entering South Africa to seek ‘greener pastures’, but have South Africans now decided enough is enough and we should beat them up and chase them out of the country? Are South Africans doing the right thing if these attacks are all about xenophobia? During apartheid many South Africans seeked refuge in other South Africa countries and were welcomed with open arms. But now that the roles have reversed and the foreigners now seek refugee in South Africa, South Africans are not welcoming the foreigners with open arms.
There is some suggestion that these attacks are not xenophobia related and that those who are ‘beating up’ the foreigners are doing it with a criminal intent. They want there to be ‘noise’ and chaos in the townships so that they can loot homes and steal goods. This theory became more evident over the weekend when the attacks were directed to shops owned by foreigners. By looting these shops they could take the goods in the shops and latter on self them off. In simple terms, this is another way of stealing.
What really worries me is that the South Africa police (SAPS) is said to being overpowered by those conducting the attacks. I feel the police should be doing a lot more to stop these attacks. Some have even called for the army to be deployed in order to stop these attacks from escalating. There has also been suggestion that these attacks may spread across to other major cities in South Africa. My thinking is that, if these attacks were purely xenophobic related then the attacks would have spread to other townships across South Africa that a lot of foreigners stay in. The fact that for now the attacks are only happening in Johannesburg gets me to think that this is all part of an organised crime syndicate.
I was in Cameroon in December and something struck me. The joy on peoples faces when they realized I was from South Africa. I was received with open arms and made to feel as though this was my home.
I ask you this question? What have we become? I look at myself in the mirror and I see black. My skin is a warm shade of brown yet people are being persecuted for exactly this. We have become exactly what the apartheid strived for us to be self-loathing, insecure and killers. When are we as South Africans going to decide not to give into past perceptions. We are Africans not South Africans – WE ARE AFRICANS. We live on a continent that has the capabilities to be self- sustainable yet we constantly fall back into behaviour that not only marks us as barbaric but also inhuman.
Stop, think and realise that this is not us. We are proud, we are joyful but most of all AFRICAN.
This is part of the apartheid legacy.Africa is a poor continent, if not the poorest in the world. Wherever you go in Africa, people are welcoming.They will share the little they have with you and make you feel at home. However, the poorest in South Africa were worse hit by Apartheid, little education, abuse by the system of that day, gross misinformation, etc. That problem is now rearing its head. Today, they are frustrated. Their belief system tells them the government must give them everything. The Africans are coming to take their jobs, RDP houses and their women. This is a deeper social problem that needs a more protracted solution than sending the army in. We are patching the wounds, instead of undertaking a major operation. So I say, we are making solutions that are great for 2010. We need deeper, long term solutions, particularly for these currently disadvantaged individuals
It is with deep grief and sadness that I ve learnt of the GENOCIDE(its not xenophobia) taking place in South Africa.South Africans need not forget the roles played by other African countries in eliminating apartheid.Countries like Zimbabwe,Zambia,Kenya and Mozambique were very instrumental.Remember faces like Samora Machel,Kenneth Kaunda,Robert Mugabe to mention but a few.I remember the Zimbabwean media in 1992 when apartheid was still hot.It was widely condemned by the papers,TV programmes denouncing apartheid were instituted,this problem was a Zimbabwean problem too.I was shocked today by the footage that I saw on TV in the morning.Have South Africans become so forgetfull.This is my question to South Africans:You are killing Zimbabweans,Mozambicans,Malawans your neighbours then WHO ARE YOU GOING TO TURN TO IN TIMES OF HARDSHIPS?HISTORY REPEATS ITSELF.To those who have been killed by these ruthless,barbaric, people REST IN ETERNAL PEACE.
How do these barbarians sleep at night? They so deeply disgust me. I was starting to become proudly South african, but that right now is the most ridiculous thought ever.do these people actually want to be and behave the way they were once so wrongly portrayed as, ruthless, heartless animals? Today as i sit here i am so, so unproudly South African that words cannot even describe it. The wheel turns, have these lunatics ever heard of Karma, I guess not, well i hope they burn in the eternal flames of hell one day and feel how that poor innocent man felt which they so shamefully burnt alive (And stood by laughing ) as he suffered the most undescribable agony. they are just showing the world what they really are, heartless!!!!!! Enough said, i’m appaulled at South Africa.
Those bastards are no better than the perpetrators of Apartheid. You are no better than the animals that did this to our people during the dark days of Apartheid. You are no better than Craig Williamson. No better than Ferdi Barnard. You are Eugene de Kock.
You spit on our people who died at Sharpeville. You spit on the killing of the Guguleto 7. You spit on the deaths at the Bisho Massacre. You spit on the 27 years Madiba spent in jail for people like you. You spit on the murder of Biko. You spit on the memories of Braam Fischer. The memory of each and every South African who died and suffered for you to have freedom. Every mother. Every father. Every wife. Every husband. Every sisters. Every brother. Every child. You spit on their suffering.
No. You are not just as bad as those perpetrators of Apartheid. You are worse. Because you should know better. This has happened to you. How could you? How the hell could you? You stupid barbaric bastards. You are killing a dream. Our dream.
http://angryafrican.net/2008/05/20/terror-in-south-africa-and-the-end-of-a-dream/
Never,Never,and never again shall it be that this beautiful land will again experience the oppression of one by another…The sun shall never set on so glorious a human achievement.Let Freedom reign.(President Mandela’s inauguration speech,10 May 1994)
Is the only difference between today and a few weeks ago the fact that it is now hitting international news???
How many murders are there on a daily basis? How many rapes? How many (white, black, Indian) people suffer mercilessly at the hands of criminals on a daily basis there?
How many of us South Africans living in Europe, live here because this is NOT NEWS TO US!
I’m sorry for what is happening in SA. Very sorry.
But I am “happy” that the rest of the world is finally taking notice of something that has been a problem for years!
This is not news. This was “day-to-day” life for many of us when we were still in SA – wasn’t it?
There is no doubt that these horrible acts are due to xenophobia. Yet one cannot deny the presence of other underlying factors, msinly unemployment. Had poverty not been so rave in such townships, these actions wouldn’t have occurred. The foreigners have become scapegoats for the people’s frustration with their life situation. The same is true of America. In the 90′s when the country was enjoying economic boom the presence of illegal immigrants was not that much of an issue, but now that the resources are shrinking there is an outcry of comtempt towards these people, and of course, it is always those greatly affected by the economy who cry out louder.
It is easy to dismiss the violence as acts of the uneducated, as some people have said. But if inflation continues the way is going, it is just a matter of time before similar voices of resentment towards immigrants echo in slippery corridors of corporate South Africa. Then what?
Am a south African but staying in Malawi. Am really sorry of what is happening there. Am here living peacefully. Working but my worry is what if the people of Malawi decide to chase us its not only me we are many. Please stop behaving like mad people. If its drugs stop it. We are all Africans. Cant you see that. I was at the bus terminal Yesterday, buses from South Africa you could see people coming back some injured its so pathetic please please stop that
if we keep on saying “please stop” with no action taken by those in power nothing is going to help. those in power should take serious steps to stopping this madness im only 17 years old but this is herat breaking to just hear its happening. if we look at the people who are doing this, its does non-educated people who cannot differentiate a wrong thing from a right thing. president, and you Mr Zuma you two are fighting over the presidency state it is time to prove your selves now do something before this getts out of hand people are dying. i never thought Souith Africans can be this cruel but they proved me wrong. they dont even think about the children who will be loosing their parents during this crazy, unnecessary actions taken by some of the stupid South Africanz. please do something people before it is to late, im begging you.
I totally agree with Anathi on this matter. I am 18 years old and two weeks ago our whole school was up in arms about the front-page on the Beeld. How can this be happening? But after I sat down and thought about the situation in my country for a few minutes, I realised that we were living in fear before the Xenophobic attacks. I am glad that people are actually starting to take action by commenting on internet blogs but what else can we do? I feel so hopeless, and I want to help!!! But how?! And isn’t it time for government to step in (not necessarily by throwing in the army)? These actions are final proof that SA is going through an enormous crisis and this is where the spiral stops for a few minutes. If something isn’t done DRASTICALLy, it can only get worse. I love my country! I love being part of the new south africa! But I hate seeing people suffer and I hate feeling that I can’t help them! Please stop this! I want a bright future in my country, I want to help build a nation of diversity, but the brutal things happening at the moment are breaking my (and lots of other children’s – black, white, coloured, indians etc) hopes. Please mr Mbeki. Think of what mr Mandela did for this country. This isn’t about BEE anymore. this is about humanity.
why can’t be a united africa;i mean we share the same colour but not language that does’nt mean we are different.this more of war that was in Iraq
this should be condemned seriously
let me tell all the people causing this attacks something!war is not the answer am from kenya and after the post election violence we have learnt alot.people lost thier lives and property.this guys need to know that all their doing is inviting curses to themselves.
please let this people know that what goes around comes around.told from someone who got affected by war
Awesome dude, I love these types of dcssuisions but I think it will be better suited over a beer from here on in. Keep wellJ.
hey bernad don’t you ever say that again, that what goes around comes around or you are trying to be a terrorist here.
its more than sad,but we can now hold a smile of hope as the attacks are slowly going away.to ionwabo toto am sorry about the statement