Xenophobia: Who Will Rescue Africa From Itself?

A friend narrated what he saw in a one of the videos of xenophobic attacks currently going on in South Africa.

Here him, ‘’I saw a crowd charging at a white vehicle. In the crowd were youths,men and women and some with babies on their back. They were out running each other to kill and murder a defenseless innocent African brother. It was like a horror movie where the deranged are thirsty of blood’’.

According to the news, what we were told was that, South Africans accuse foreigners of taking their jobs and women, but we saw in the videos uploaded online didn’t justify that claim. In the attacks,those that are being attacked are shop owners who set up their own businesses. Mobs attack shop owners and loot their properties. How does that justify the claim that foreigners were taking their jobs?

When I first heard the news that some hoodlums in South African are attacking foreigners in south Africa, i couldn’t understand why responsible citizens of any nation would be attacking their foreign guests, but it became more confusing when I heard that those being attacked are fellow Africans brothers and sisters. The ignorant mobs accused them of being foreigners taking their jobs and women. How so? How can South Africa regard other African brothers as foreigners? These were the same brothers who stood with them when they needed them.

The motives behind this killing spree was hanged on the call by a traditional ruler of Zulu, King Goodwill Zwelithini who allegedly said foreigners should pack their bags and leave the country. They are unwanted the king said,re-emphasizing the call even after many foreigners were being killed in South Africa.

It was observed that, since the King allegedly made this hateful remark last month, no one strongly rebuked him, no civil society seriously condemned him, no government institution cautioned him and no authority ask the public to disregard his remark. Despite making the said statement in public before both police minister Nathi Nhleko and prvincial MEC Willies Mchunu, government never reacted until the attacks begun.

With the ongoing situation in South Africa, the march towards progress has been terribly and abysmally truncated in modern African society. Who will rescue Africa from itself?

Any inquiry into African crisis would sooner observe that, government approach to crisis management is basically reactive: a crisis erupts into violence and security forces are required to be deployed to restore law and order. This may be followed by an inquiry (judicial or otherwise) or such other options available to the government. All these are seen as reacting to the rupture in the system. They never take proactive measure to prevent crisis from starting, rather, they wait for it to start and then react. This is a bad leadership trait.

Had the South African government, media, civil society organizations and the entire country reacted strongly against the hateful remark of the king, it is possible that we avert the current crisis.

The early warning signal about this incident had long been visible, but the government didn’t give it much attention. Over and over again, selective attacks of immigrants, particularly Nigerians have been taking place in South Africa without adequate measure to prevent recurrence. In 2008, similar incident took place, but there was no measure to prevent its re-occurrence. It is my candidate opinion that, South Africa government must take responsibility for this ugly scene and ensure adequate protection for our brothers in South Africa. The government must come forward to tell us what is really happening in that country, what are south African media feeding their citizens with in term of information?what is responsible for this Afro/xenophobia and what measure would be put in place to prevent future re-occurrence.

It should be noted that, few days to Nigeria’s governorship election, the traditional ruler (King) of Lagos, Oba Rilwan Akinolu made comments perceived to be encouraging discrimination against certain residents in Lagos, but before leaving the spot where the remark was made, the entire Nigerian public had bombarded the Oba and rebuked him for such remark. Even those the Oba was trying to support rebuked him. This is how to respond to early warning signals of conflict, failure of which some people might be fooled into believing such negative call.

However, it was regrettable that despite the gravity of the ongoing killing in South Africa,king Goodwill was still full of arrogance and pride, feeling no remorse for his inciting remark. He said he has nothing to be sorry about. The king, according to his spokesman, Prince Zulu Thulan said that he stand by each and every of his words. He maintained that, foreigners must pack their bags and get out of South Africa, they are not wanted he said.

In view of the fore-going, It is safe to conclude that, some sections, if not majority of South Africans directly or indirectly share the position of the King.

Although, many countries have been condemning the incidence. South African nationals both home and abroad have also expressed their sadness over the incidence, urging their government to end the ugly situation, but the murderers are determined to continue the killing spree,yet government have not been doing enough to stop them. Some pictures surfaced on the internet, where Suth African police simply looked the other way while our African brother are being attacked and looted.

Let true be told, the foundation of African brotherhood is shaking. A continent which had always stood for freedom and shown solidarity with its own is now being threatened. Those who watched Nigeria and other African nations fight for South Africa’s freedom would be amazed at the ongoing show of shame. Who are the attackers? They are Africans. Who are being attacked? They are also Africans. So, how can Africans be regarded as foreigners in Africa? This is a strange time.

It was recalled that, primary and secondary school children in Nigeria often starved themselves to contribute money to be sent to South Africa during the apartheid regime. Nigerian government was recorded to have spent over $60 billion in the struggle to free South Africa. Also, President Samora Micheal of Mozambique was killed mainly because of his support for South Africa’s freedom. How can the same South Africa accuse other brothers of taking their jobs and women? How can they brand them foreigners in the same country where other western immigrants could live without any problem? It is so disheartening.

As clearly captured by an unknown author in his narrative, South Africa is a country, whose people would still have been struggling to eke out meager existence in the back waters of their country, had Nigeria not embolden herself and flex her muscles to rescue brother and sister Africans, who were deepen in oppression and humiliation in the southern part of the mother continent. How sad that Nigerian citizens and other African brothers are now being repaid with ghastly murder,looting,intimidation,brigandage and untold humiliation in a territory that should be regarded as a brother African homeland. How time flies.

There is no doubt that the majority of South Africans are good people that are strongly against this foolishness. Many of them abhor the conduct of the few misguided people among them, but we must continue to raise our voice against the evil few amongst us.

Honourable Gbenga Olawepo, the former renowned student union leader in Nigeria told me how he organize weekly protest and fund raising in Lagos to support south Africa during the Apartheid regime. Many universities, Civil Society Organizations and others across the continent did what they can to extend helping hand to our brothers in South African.

It was on record that Nigeria broke diplomatic tie with many western nations during that period just to send strong signal to them that their support for the apartheid regime would not be tolerated. Nigeria boycotted the common wealth games in New zealand because of South Africa, and 32 other countries joined us against the British government. as a result of this strong action, the whole world took notice and the struggle for the liberation of South Africa was immediately hyper-accelerated.

Also, Nigeria took very drastic measure against foreign collaborators of the apartheid regime, nationalizing their assets. President Obasanjo’s regime particularly send strong signal to western nations that Nigeria will not tolerate nor flirt with any country doing business with the apartheid regime and as a result, Nigeria nationalized Barclay's bank in Nigeria after the bank ignored the strong warning not to buy the South African bond, which would be in violation of the economic/trade embargo on the racist apartheid regime. Nigeria also nationalize the British Petroleum (BP) for supplying oil to the apartheid regime. These were decisions that carried heavy implication for Nigeria, but for the love of our brothers in South Africa, the country risked all to help south Africa regain freedom.

Additionally, Nigeria provided secrete military training in Kaduna and other materials,financial and diplomatic support to African National Congress (ANC) forces.

That is not all, Nigeria also provided full scholarship to South Africans to study in Nigeria which include accommodation, feeding and others. How can all these be forgotten so soon that the same Nigerian and other African brothers are being killed in South Africa simply because they reside in that country? This is such a dark time in African history.

It is such a twisted faith that today, while those who imposed the apartheid regime were being accorded respect in South Africa, those brothers who sacrificed their life,time,comfort, resources and energy are now being killed as foreigners in South Africa. What a shame.

Governor Fashola of Lagos once stated that, African countries like Nigeria once expended much money and commitment to the fight against apartheid, but he wondered why upon all the country’s effort at restoring democracy in south Africa, Nigerians and other African nationals are the one’s being driven out of South Africa.

While British which is the strongest backer of apartheid regime can enter South Africa without a visa, Nigerians have to take a visa, stressing that such issues pose very deep question. It is such a surprise that, rather than improve its relationship with other African nations, the current targeted killings opened another negative chapter.

Who would have imagined that, the land of Nelson Mandela, Govan Mbeki and others great freedom fighters, who gave their all for freedom would suddenly be reduced to an anti-African gulag. Those ignorant murderers who descend on fellow African have betrayed the great African warriors and heroes who lay down their life fighting for freedom in this beautiful continent named ‘’Mama Africa’’.

Let me remind King Goodwill and his goons that, when South Africa was under apartheid regime, the king didn’t ask those he now referred to as foreigners not to send their money to South Africa, he didn’t ask Nigeria not to give scholarship to South Africans, he didn’t ask ANC to reject all diplomatic, materials and financial support the entire Africa was providing. The Over $60billion spent by Nigeria was never rejected. Therefore, the King has no moral right to brand any one as foreigners or tell them to leave South Africa.

Let me conclude that, while it is true that what is happening in South Africa must be stopped at all cost, we must advice other African nations not to resort to acting wrongly to our South African brothers as a result of this incident. I have read that in Zambia, all South African musics have been barred from their radio stations. Many are also advocating for the closure of South African businesses like MTN, DSTV and many others, but in my opinion, that is not the right thing to do. South African musics are done by ordinary south Africans struggling to make ends meat, we shouldn’t hold them responsible for the bad actions of the few South Africans. Those who owned businesses like Shoprite, MTN etc were also not responsible for the xenophobic attacks and it wouldn’t be right to hold them accountable. Let us focus on holding the South African government who have the primary responsibility of protecting our brothers and sisters in South Africa. We shouldn’t abhor the good South Africans because of the conduct of the few bad one’s, let us jointly correct the bad one’s and restore the almost broken relationship.

We must remembers that, Africa sold the ideals of the thesis of the brotherhood of man which resonated in the diction of being your brother’s keeper, to the global space. This African philosophy was originated by the autochthones and had flourished throughout the ages.

It transformed into collectivism with a garb of solidarity, cooperation and compromise. This has been clothed in a parable, contextualizing the harmonious relationship between the tree and the leaves as: This collectivist orientation of African values is shown where marriage is perceived as a contract between families, land is vested in communities and work is seen as a social obligation towards the group, where sharing with other members of the group is an obligation of those who have more than they need for survival (economy of affection). The much used parable to symbolize this relationship between the group and its constituent individuals is that of the tree and its leaf (sic). The leaf is doomed if separated from the tree, while the tree can grow more leafs (sic) and is not affected by the loss of few leaves, but dies when loosing many or all leaves (Munker, 1998:80). The ideal of collectivism, therefore, buttresses the point of cooperation and cooperative societies recognized the world over.

Abdulrazaq O Hamzat is a Peace and Conflict Expert. He writes from Abuja, Nigeria and can be reach on [email protected]. Follow me on twitter @Abdool101