Sad to be a South African ...

This past weekend, residents of Masipumelele informal settlement apologised to displaced people driven from their homes in the township during the cowardly xenophobic attacks that have raced through some Western Cape informal settlements since the start of the weekend.

One Masipumelele resident said in an interview that “it sure does not feel good to be a South African right now”. It is a sentiment that any patriot can echo. Even here, at this level, we can identify with all South Africans condemning this ruthless exploitation of our brothers and sisters. I, for one, feel ashamed at these atrocities.

But I think we also need to take heed of some of the claims made by the protesters. Not that I am saying what they did was right. South Africa has created many platforms for people to express their anger or concern, and violence is certainly not one of them. But what I’m saying is that we need to politically interrogate all the claims by these aggrieved citizens, and see what is false and what is true.

ANC president Jacob Zuma addressed thousands of displaced refugees this weekend in Springs. He categorically stated, in no uncertain terms, that “there can never be any excuse for the callous behaviour of certain Africans against other Africans who fled their own country in the first place because they were made not to feel welcome there. Now, we put them through the same scenario for the second time.”

In order to understand what it is Zuma was speaking to, we also need to understand what has driven these people from their homes in the first place. Despite more than enough airtime given to Darfur, very few news reports actually show us what is really happening on the ground. Very few of us are aware of people walking — yes, walking — to South Africa from Rwanda, the DRC and even as far as Somalia, just because they believe that they will enjoy a better life in South Africa until things have changed in their country.

Yes, if we speak to many of these refugees right here in Cape Town, we will hear that they do not intend remaining here forever. They want to go home.

I also want to draw your attention to the fact that many African countries right now are not condemning us as a nation. Yes, they are speaking out against the atrocities, but they realise that this is not a real picture of South Africans — that these cowardly attacks are carried our by a very small minority.

They also believe that some or the other force is behind this all, be it criminal or political.

In Mozambique, for instance, 130 police officers are guarding 25 South Africans at our High Commission in Maputo in fear of reprisal attacks. In Arusha, Tanzania, special police units are guarding South African businesses, including more than 10 police special force members for the biggest Shoprite store outside South Africa.

In Angola, police and defence force units are escorting South Africans to airports in order for them to take secure flights back home. Security has been increased at almost all South African foreign missions in African countries. Even at the African Union and the United Nations, security around our foreign diplomats has been tightened.

Current AU chairperson and Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete also reiterated the AU’s support for the effort of South Africa to stem the violence.

Just on Sunday, more than 18 000 Mozambicans passed through the Ressano Garcia border post from South Africa to Mozambique, while a further 1 850 people fleeing violence in KwaZulu-Natal had entered through the Ponta de Ouro border. The sad thing is that most of these people returning to Mozambique were not illegally in South Africa.

South Africa is currently experiencing a severe shortage of black educators in the fields of mathematics and science. We simply do not have enough black South Africans to teach these subjects. So, the Department of Education has opened the way for Zimbabweans to teach in South Africa for a limited time until enough South Africans have trained to become educators in these critical areas. And these Zimbabwean educators are highly trained. The question is: How many of them have returned to their schools this morning?

What do our mines look like this morning, without the Shangaan who have been on our mining fields for decades?

The Refugee Act of 1998, as amended, reiterates the United Nations and African Union declarations on the status of refugees. Simply put, refugees, asylum-seekers and naturalised citizens enjoy the same rights and have the same responsibilities as South Africans born in this country.

State President Thabo Mbeki on Sunday called for a civic education campaign to make our people aware of the impact these xenophobic attacks would have on our entire society. I call on the ANC to mobilise our branches to lead this campaign.