The Rage of Natives

Bisi Olawun mi argues that rationality, note motion, should guide Nigeria’ s reaction to South Africans’ xenophobia

What will make someone leave what normally should be his/her natural comfort zone – the native homeland - in search of greener pastures if not for economic deprivations and unfulfilled aspirations at home?

In the past few days, South Africans’ resurgent violent attacks on foreigners, particularly Nigerians, have been major news item in the Nigerian media and threatening Nigeria-South Africa relations. Nigerian youths, who have been largely docile on the many pains inflicted on the Nigerian people by a capricious elite, suddenly got their adrenalin worked up enough to demonstrate in Abuja against South African business interests in the country, targeting its most visible asset – MTN, the telecom giant. Xenophobic attack is an extreme, violent manifestation of nativity angst about foreigners when institutions of state fail to proactively address fears of indigenes. Xenophobia is generally not spontaneous, but rather a product of simmering resentment. So, what are the lingering resentments of South Africans which find expression in repeated violence against foreigners? Perhaps, we need to start with definition of terms to put matters in contextual balance. To citizens of host countries, calling non citizens ‘foreigners’ is a generic, cosmetic flavouring of a stark reality – the reality that such non citizens who are generally engaged in informal trade and small businesses are simply economic refugees or economic irritants. Who can be expected to be accommodating of irritants ? Such perception shapes relationships. The issue is: What will make someone leave what normally should be his/her natural comfort zone – the native homeland - in search of greener pastures if not for economic deprivations and unfulfilled aspirations at home?

In the recurring episodes of xenophobic attacks by South Africans against foreigners, and particularly those from Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, DR Congo, Pakistan, two charges have endured – economic ascendancy of and drug trade/prostitution by the foreigners. While many of the commentaries in the media by Nigerians on the xenophobic attacks have a nationalist fervor against so-called ingrate South Africans ignoring Nigeria’s sacrifices in liberating them from the shackles the racist Apartheid regime, two critical areas have been largely ignored or glossed over. One is the failure of public governance in both Nigeria and South Africa that has left masses of their people marooned in poverty. For instance, given the economic endowments of Nigeria, Nigerians should not be economic refugees in other lands but for the mindless looting of its public treasury by an unconscionable elite, that has led to stunted economic growth thereby forcing thousands of its citizens to flee the land in search of economic refuge abroad. For the South African government, making scapegoats of foreigners by its citizens for their economic woes is convenient as it diverts attention from its failure to deliver on the good life promise of Black majority rule. The other xenophobic trigger is the seeming lack of humility by prospering foreigners seen as putting on airs and being denigrating in relating with their hosts. A mix of aggressive, rich foreigners and pauperised indigenes is a recipe for violent eruptions by the natives. Xenophobia, the South African brand, is also a repudiation of globalisation that preaches tolerance of migration/mobility of labour, capital and innovation to any part of the world to generate maximum returns. The natives are demanding localisation – South Africa for South Africans - and telling the strutting foreigners to let charity begin in their home countries ! That is the crux of the matter. The victory of Donald Trump as American president in the November 8, 2016 general election is seen as Xenophobia by Ballot! Isn’t it ironical that such virulent anti-foreigner sentiment should be exhibited in a country of immigrants and a leading proponent of globalisation? It indicates times are changing, with an undercurrent to reverse globalisation and the return of nationalist sentiments.

Another sticking point is the association of foreigners with escalating crime in South Africa. Foreigners have been accused of importing violent crime, drugs and prostitution into South Africa, with many fingers pointing at Nigerians. This perhaps explains why South African President, Jacob Zuma, described the violent attacks as anti-crime protests and not anti-foreigners’ xenophobia. If crime surge seems to accompany immigrants’ influx, can South Africans be honestly blamed if they linked the two developments? There could also be the sense of entitlement among Nigerians in South Africa given the huge sacrifices Nigeria made in the struggle to dismantle the racist Apartheid regime. Even an intellectual, Prof. Bola Akinterinwa, a professor of International Relations, could not resist the notion of Nigerians deserving special treatment by South Africans. In his Sunday, February 26, 2017 column in THISDAY newspaper he had declared : “South Africans can be hostile to foreigners but Nigerians ought to be an exception…South Africans, no matter their grievances , cannot have any legitimate animosity vis-à-vis Nigeria and its people who did what was humanly , financially, educationally, materially, diplomatically and culturally possible to support the liberation of black South Africans from the shackles of domination of segregationist white South Africans”. The danger here is that such attitude could unwittingly induce arrogance among Nigerians in South Africa which can be offensive to the sensitivities of indigenes. When such perceived arrogant foreigners are linked with crimes, it creates a volatile situation. Prof. Akinterinwa pointed out that even where allegations of drug peddling and prostitution are levelled against Nigerians, it is for the police to tackle. That was the point made by the South African High Commissioner to Nigeria, Lulu Mngulu, that police ineptitude in handling the allegations led the people to engage in self help.

The reality of Nigeria-South Africa economic relations is that Nigeria cannot flex the muscle of reciprocity – reprisal against South African companies here will create job losses for Nigerians and as such counter-productive. Rationality, not emotion, should guide Nigeria’s reaction to South Africans’ xenophobia. We need to educate our people on proper conduct in foreign lands and have our embassies document allegations against and convictions of Nigerians in the Diaspora to empirically establish the justification or otherwise of their criminal tag. That Nigerians abroad don’t want to return home, in spite of the attacks they suffer, is the shame of a nation.

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