29 May 2008: ISS Today: Xenophobia on the Loose in South Africa: Observations on the Recent Conflagration

29 May 2008: Xenophobia on the Loose in South Africa: Observations on the Recent Conflagration

 

Occurring as they did on the eve of Africa Day, the recent violent attacks mainly directed at non-South Africans in the major urban areas of the country, were bound to attract a great deal of publicity, comment and discussion. In the aftermath of such incidents, the underlying causes and significance tend to get obscured. The timing, nature and scale of the recent violence oblige us to try and make sure that this does not happen again. What lessons can be learnt from the recent events?

 

An important point to note is that South Africa is not the first country in the world, or indeed in Africa, to encounter violent motivated by an aversion to foreigners or minorities. The term xenophobia generally encapsulates a deep fear and dislike of foreigners or unknown persons. In South Africa, as in the case of attacks on foreigners in urban areas in contemporary Germany, xenophobia takes the form of contemptuous, negative attitudes to and hostile treatment of black foreigners. In the last three weeks the treatment has tended to be extremely violent, murderous or life threatening. The nature of the violence, particularly in Cape Town perhaps left a few critical lessons.

 

The most visible lesson is that some communities have internalised brutal responses to things or people that they dislike. It has often been argued that the violent nature of law enforcement during much of the apartheid era has rubbed off on ordinary people. The incidents in Alexandra, Ramaphosa Park and Du Noon gave us a sense of what this means. Related to this is the equally negative impact of the abuse of foreign nationals by government officials. The treatment meted out to foreigners has been well documented by the South African Human Rights Commission and Human Rights Watch. It sends out the message that foreigners can be treated with disdain with no adverse consequences.

 

The second observation is that organised crime has embedded itself within communities, and is often ready to take advantage of opportunities created by public mayhem. Wherever violent incidents against foreign-owned businesses occurred, it emerged that there was a criminal element that targeted assets for looting. In some cases, victims were carefully selected on the basis of what could be extracted from them. Somali and Nigerian businesses come to mind. Related to this are the less well-publicised attempts to bully some foreign nationals into relinquishing their positions on corporate boards.

 

A third lesson should perhaps be taken to heart by both government and private business. To the extent that poverty and socio-economic hardship of South Africans can be blamed for perpetuating the conditions in the areas in which the violence flared up, the responsibility to intervene to improve things rests on both the state and big business. What can be done to make informal settlements a thing of the past? One is aware of efforts in Cape Town to improve the access to, and quality of housing – but there seems to be an unhealthy backlog demanding sustained attention. To what extent is the financial sector opening up to participation in the economy by ordinary people in this era of high interest rates and high food prices?

 

The final observation is that some of the comments aired in the media on the recent events confirm the existence of stereotypes rooted in the philosophy underlying the policy of apartheid. According to these stereotypes, uncontrolled migration is to be blamed for societal ills like joblessness, crime and for the spread of disease. These perceptions seem odd, in the light of the findings of a survey by the Southern African Migration Project (SAMP). SAMP found that, of the people interviewed, 60% reported that they had no contact with migrants and only 4% said that they had a “great deal” of contact. In all probability, the prejudices are the product of gossip, misinformation and propaganda. Alternative information about migrants may well change attitudes.

 

In a snap survey, researcher Thobani Matheza found that most South Africans make no distinction between different categories of foreigners.  The same hostility directed at illegal immigrants is also vented at migrants that are entitled to be in South Africa, such as permanent residents, refugees and asylum-seekers. It appears that there are serious implications for compliance by the South African government with the Constitution.

 

Charles Goredema, Programme Head, Organised Crime and Money Laundering, ISS Cape Town

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