Racial killings and displacement of foreign nationals living in South Africa, including Nigeria, evoked international condemnation from countries and civil rights organisations, writes Senior Correspondent, ONYEWUCHI OJINNAKA.
Protests, condemnation and anger by civil rights groups in Nigeria and other countries have trailed the outbreak of violence in South Africa referred as xenophobia or attack of foreigners living in South Africa. The attack, which erupted in South Africa about three weeks ago, has escalated, claiming several lives and displacing over 500,000 foreign nationals.
The root
Xenophobia simply means dislike of or prejudice against people from other countries. It is more like racial hatred or ethnocentricity. It is an excessive and irrational fear of anything foreign. This fear is most often of foreign people, places or objects. People who are xenophobic may display fear or even anger towards others who are foreign.
The cause of this surge in violence in South Africa is murky. While some attributed it to the alleged inflammatory comments about foreign nationals from a Zulu king, others said that a labour dispute between locals and foreigners last March turned nasty. Unemployment in impoverished areas has also been said to be a factor. The violence has caused thousands of immigrants to seek refuge at police stations and shelters.
The attacks in South Africa targeted African migrants whom locals accuse of stealing their sources of living and women. According to reports, it is the deadliest spread of xenophobic violence South Africa has experienced since 2008, when at least 67 people were killed. It is an enactment of apartheid which was crushed in 1994 with the installation of Nelson Mandela as the first Black African President of South Africa.
The attacks on foreigners affected Durban, Johannesburg and other cities. Nigerians in South Africa are said to have already lost more than 1.2 million Rand (about N21 million), since the violence broke out last month.
Protests by rights groups
Reacting to the unfortunate killings, civil rights groups and organisations have staged protests and marched to South African Mission in Lagos, Abuja and other business outfits in Nigeria owned by South Africa, such as MTN, Multichoice, Shoprite and Protea Hotels, carrying placards to express their anger over the the fate of Nigerians in South Africa. The protests spread to Benin City, Edo State, and some other major cities in Nigeria.
Registering its grievances over the xenophobic attack in South Africa, one of the civil society organisations in Benin known as The Flagship, threatened to shut down South African business outfits operating in Nigeria.
The Abuja protest was led by a civil rights organisation called Advocate for Peoples Right and Justice. The protesters carried placards some of which read, “Say No to Xenophobia”, “Say No to Killing of Nigerians in South Africa”, “Foreigners are not responsible for your joblessness, stop the killings now” and “We have showed Africans and South Africans love, why are they attacking us?”
In a joint statement, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Congress of South African Trade Unions condemned the attack, saying: “The xenophobic attacks in South Africa is a reflection of the crisis of governance in Africa as reflected by the worsening poverty and unemployment rate in the continent.”
Reacting to the attack, ActionAid International Nigeria and South Africa has condemned, in the strongest terms, the current outbreak of xenophobic violence and the violent attacks on people, their properties and shops in Kwa-Zulu Natal and increasingly in Gauteng.
The statement jointly signed by Emily Craven and Sifiso Adlovu from ActionAid South Africa, stated that “Like many other South Africans, we have been deeply saddened and disturbed to see this latest flare up of a form of violence and discrimination that has become an all-too-familiar-sight on our political landscape.
“Since 2008, there have been numerous reported outbreaks of xenophobic violence that have cost countless lives. Some of these have achieved high amounts of media and public interest while many others have gone almost unnoticed,” ActionAid further said.
“A worrying trend across all these incidents is a refusal of those in power to name these attacks for what they are – xenophobic violence targeting African and Asian foreign nationals based on their identities. Attempts to write this violence off as the work of a small criminal element or to justify it on the grounds that foreigners are stealing jobs or committing crime simply cloud the issue and do not help us get to the bottom of this horizontal violence affecting mostly the working class and those living in poverty.”
According to the organisation, “South Africa owes a great debt to African countries for their support and solidarity during our liberation struggle. Their humanity and compassion stood in stark contrast to the inhumanity and violence of the regime here in South Africa. It is therefore deeply saddening to see that it is with this same inhumanity and violence that we are choosing to treat our fellow Africans.
“The crisis in South Africa demands strong leadership to condemn without qualification the xenophobic uAtterances of prominent people such as King Goodwill Zwelithini and the President’s son, Edward Zuma.”
ActionAid also applauds the South African Human Rights Commission for its decision to investigate “these remarks” as they have no place in the country’s democracy.
Expressing its disgust over the attack, the organisation expressed its delight in the deployment of several ministers including Minister of Home Affairs, Malusi Gigaba; Minister of Police, Nathi Nhleko; and Minister of State Security, David Mahlobo; to Kwazulu-Natal to address the xenophobic violence in that area.
While recognising the importance of bringing the existing situation under control, the organisation is also calling government, civil society, trade unions, faith-based groups and other stakeholders to come together to build a comprehensive and lasting solution to the scourge of xenophobia in South Africa, stressing that without full commitment, “we will continually find ourselves fighting the fires of outbreaks of violence without ever bringing about lasting change”.
Consequently, the organisation has urged the South African government and leaders to name these attacks for what they are, condemn them in the strongest terms and take strong action against any individual found guilty of inciting the violence, work speedily to bring the current situation under control and act to protect foreign nationals and their livelihoods, prosecute to the fullest extent of the law the perpetrators and those responsible for attacks, and work with civil society, faith-based groups and other stakeholders to develop a long term strategy to tackle the scourge of xenophobic violence in South Africa.
Demand for legal action
A Lagos based civil rights organisation, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), has urged the government of President Goodluck Jonathan to urgently take legal action against the South African government before the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights to seek effective remedies, including adequate compensation, for Nigerian victims of xenophobic attacks in South Africa.
In a statement made by SERAP executive director, Adetokunbo Mumuni, the organisation is worried that, “Several Nigerians have been attacked and have lost more than N21 million in the on-going xenophobic attacks in South Africa.”
It added that the unwarranted attack is unacceptable, stressing that it clearly violates the obligations of South Africa under the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights. “These serious human rights abuses call for strong and decisive action from our government.”
Mumuni recounts that both South Africa and Nigeria had ratified the African Charter, stating that If President Jonathan is to side with the victims and ensure that they receive adequate compensation, he has to immediately instruct the Attorney General of the Federation, Mohammed Adoke (SAN), to urgently file an inter-state communication before the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights.
According to the organisation, “there is no better time for President Jonathan to do this, as the African Commission is meeting this week in Banjul, The Gambia, for its 56th Ordinary Session. Articles 48 and 49 read together with Article 47 provide the legal basis for Nigeria to submit communication against South Africa for violations of the right to life and non-discrimination provisions of the charter. Countries like Uganda have taken full advantage of this procedure in the past and there is absolutely no reason Nigeria cannot do the same.
“By taking the proposed legal action against South Africa, the Jonathan government will be giving Nigerians in South Africa the best parting gift ever, while also sending a powerful message to the authorities there that Nigeria will no longer accept the inadequate response by South Africa to blatant attacks against our citizens.
“The South African authorities have persistently failed to strongly speak out against xenophobic attacks, and to hold perpetrators accountable. This in turn has continued to amplify the negative impact and the feeling of fear and vulnerability of the Nigerian community in South Africa. Such a failure to act also sends a message of impunity to those who commit such crimes. An expectation of impunity can contribute to an escalation of such attacks. And this is exactly why our government must act decisively to stop this trend.”
SERAP further said, “South African authorities have the primary responsibility to protect individuals, including Nigerians resident in that country, from all types of violence and the duty to implement their international legal obligations to combat xenophobic and other forms of bias-motivated violence and the promotion of human rights and democratic values.”
MultiChoice Africa, a South African business outfit operating in Nigeria, has condemned the xenophobic attacks in South Africa. It said it is appalled by the acts of violence being perpetrated against fellow brothers and sisters in South Africa.
“As a multi-cultural African organisation, we respect and embrace diversity, and all the different traditions and religions across the continent. This is demonstrated through by our multinational staff complement, rich African programming and channels on both our DStv and GOtv platforms,” the company said, advocating equality and freedom for all, and commiserates with the families and friends of those who are affected or lost their lives in the unforgivable acts of violence.
