Time to act against prejudice

WITH the exception of Moscow on the Hudson, I don’t know of any movie which gives South African xenophobes, the government and media an inkling of what it means to leave one’s country and attempt to fit into a new society, especially one as hostile as South Africa.

Whenever xenophobia manifests itself in wanton scenes of murder, robbery and arson, the government denies the nature of what’s happening, journalists write a few articles and shallow analyses, TV stations run pathetic logos that say “we are one” and “say no to xenophobia” for a week or two, then the country goes back to its normal prejudiced ways until the next looting and murder spree. Why does this keep happening?

First, because South Africans are taught from an early age to fear the unknown, never venture off the beaten social track and to respond violently to perceived threats. It all goes back to the country’s turbulent early history, to the tribal warfare, the Great Trek and European powers’ imperial ambitions.

It runs through two Anglo-Boer wars and the socio-economic consequences of decades of compulsory military service and anti-apartheid movements, whose members came home to find immigrants in the jobs they were forced to abandon in order to fight.

Of course, in that situation it’s easier for citizens to blame the immigrants instead of the leaders who sent them to kill or be killed, because doing otherwise would delegitimise the causes they fought and suffered for.

This is why prejudice and resentment run deep in the South African psyche.

It’s natural to feel overwhelmed by a pervasive social problem and not to know where to begin solving it, but there are things which can be done. For starters, South Africa needs: ý A realistic long-term immigration policy which includes secure borders;

Migrant and refugee processing centres, integrity and professionalism among our Home Affairs officials;

An army which no longer treats dual citizenship holders as security risks and threats to jobs, to be harassed until they attempt suicide and quit;

A police force that doesn’t deport people who don’t carry their ID books, and joins in while Somali and Pakistani shops are looted;

Language and integration programmes for immigrants in schools (not seen since 1993);

Senior government and prominent society figures to attend immigrants’ community fairs; and

A sustained anti-xenophobia campaign to target South Africans of all ages.

In an indifferent society, change usually occurs when people die, yet it’s abundantly clear that neither the majority of ordinary South Africans nor the government have changed much since Ernesto Nhamuave was burned to death in 2008, Mido Macia was dragged while handcuffed to a Casspir in 2013 and Emmanuel Sithole was fatally stabbed this year.

These three names represent iconic depictions of South Africa’s lack of humanity, but there are more, mostly known only to God and a few good souls who care, certainly not to the government or King Goodwill Zwelithini.

Out of the thousands of South Africans I have met in the last 24 years, only seven said I was South African, and six (all Afrikaners) made me feel welcome in their homes and hearts.

Folks, stop living in denial – xenophobia hasn’t gone away, it’s merely festering under the surface of South Africa’s sick social fabric.

It is high time for society, the government and the media to understand the only response to a persistent social problem is not useless Twitter hashtags or TV logos, but an equally persistent campaign to eliminate this evil before our country becomes known as the Xenophobic Republic of South Africa.

Mircea Negres, Pretoria