Discussion Forum
Mbeki Is to Blame for Xenophobic Attacks, Says Watchdog
By Ian Evans in Cape Town
Wednesday, 21 May 2008
Reuters
Photo: President Mbeki who is due to fly to Tanzania today for a two-day meeting of the African Union, has condemned the violence.
Aid workers in Johannesburg are struggling to feed and shelter the thousands of immigrants who have fled a wave of xenophobic attacks in which 24 people have been killed.
The Institute for Race Relations, a respected think-tank, blames the ANC government and President Thabo Mbeki for the violence, the worst South Africa has seen since the dying days of apartheid. Its chief executive, Frans Cronje, said corruption, failing law and order, economic mismanagement and lack of proper border controls "contributed to create a perfect storm of lawlessness, poverty and unfulfilled expectations which has now erupted into violence".
Armed gangs were continuing their attacks on refugees around the financial capital last night as Mr Mbeki prepared to fly to Tanzania for a conference.
Members of his administration claimed a shadowy "third force" was at work. They declined to say what that force was but blamed armed, drunken criminals for the violence. A spokesman said the National Intelligence Agency had joined the investigation into the causes of the attacks which erupted in the Alexandra township 11 days ago.
Since then, refugees from Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Malawi among other African nations have been shot at, burnt, raped, beaten and driven from their homes to seek protection at police stations and community halls.
Police have called in help from neighbouring provinces but as of last night, soldiers remained in their barracks.
The authorities estimate that about 10,000 people have fled their homes in townships, squatter camps and poorer suburbs in and around Johannesburg.
In one attack yesterday, a mob stormed a hostel in Reiger Park, east of the city, in their hunt for foreign workers. They found four Mozambican men who were working in the mines. One was beaten to death in his room and the other three dragged outside and beaten with metal poles before being dragged to nearby grassland and left for dead. By the time paramedics arrived, one had died. The other two were taken to hospital, but their condition was unclear last night.
The institute said: "The failure to protect communities from criminal elements and to remove those elements had allowed criminals to take full advantage of chaos and disorder to rob, rape, and loot. The collapse of proper border control mechanisms saw literally millions of people gaining entry to South Africa illegally. Poor policy decisions and simple incompetence in border policing therefore contributed directly to the presence of a large illegal population in South Africa. Without adequate legal standing in the community these people became easy or soft targets for mob violence."
An estimated five million refugees live in South Africa, 3.5 million of whom are believed to be Zimbabweans fleeing violence and economic chaos under Robert Mugabe. Gangs targeting refugees claim immigrants get preferential housing treatment, taking scarce jobs and committing crime.
The opposition Democratic Alliance again called on the government to mobilise troops to bring order. Jack Bloom, the party's leader in Gauteng province where the killings are taking place, said soldiers from two military bases could easily be deployed.
"President Thabo Mbeki is notoriously allergic to admitting that even the most obvious crisis is a crisis, so yet again people die because he is out of touch with reality, both here and in Zimbabwe," Mr Bloom said.
President Mbeki who is due to fly to Tanzania today for a two-day meeting of the African Union, has condemned the violence. He said: "Citizens from other countries on the African continent and beyond are as human as we are and deserve to be treated with respect and dignity. South Africa is not and will never be an island separate from the rest of the continent."
Testimony of a reluctant witness
Yesterday, I witnessed a nightmare take place in broad daylight. Mobs hunting down foreigners, setting up roadblocks. They were cornering people, beating them up, and when they were done, they stole anything of value they had. I never thought it would be my turn to pack up and move to a friend's house. But it's a crisis when you look outside your window and see someone running for his life, watch while they are cornered, then beaten almost to death with a brick, and the attackers laugh, as if it were all just a game. For an hour I heard the sounds of women screaming and babies crying while they raided the building next to me. I could not watch any more. No one should. You should never be allowed to watch an individual's dignity taken away from them. It kills outright the belief and trust you have in people. So what's next? You will probably have one less Zimbabwean at your office. But spare a thought for the gardener, the waiter and maid who wait on you because a lot of them are also from Zimbabwe. They are here because they don't have a choice. What they once valued has been taken away from them.
Kudzanai Chiurai is a Zimbabwean artist forced to flee to Johannesburg after painting Robert Mugabe with his head on fire.
From: CCACH Community List
Sent: Wednesday, May 21, 2008 6:02 PM
To: CCACH Community Services
Subject: RE: Mbeki is to blame for xenophobic attacks, says watchdog
RESPONSE TO THE ARTICLE SENT OUT ON THE LIST: Mbeki is to blame for xenophobic attacks, says watchdog
Here we go again! Blaming Mbeki for “xenophobic violence” in SA is another example of how African Heads of States are judged with one standard from the standards by which we assign blame to leaders from other parts of the world, particularly in the industrialized world. For example, leaders from rich industrialized countries are not personally blamed when immigrants are beaten and killed as it happens every now and then to immigrants in certain countries in Europe or when children are hungry because of poverty in the land of plenty. But in Africa, leaders are open season for wild accusations, insults, and innuendos which could possibly declare them as criminals for economic, political and social failures which are sometime the result of decades and sometime centuries of structures and policies that are responsible for such violence or timed bomb waiting to explode in time.
Apartheid System was a violent system coupled with economic and political marginalization that ignited hate and racism on greater proportions which the world could not ignore and therefore the world demanded that the Apartheid System in SA be dismantled. It is nave to think that such violence had completely ceased since ANC took power. Black South Africans could not continue to blame white south Africans after apartheid because the whites were no longer in Power – they are. Therefore, who do they blame for their economic marginalization, poverty and deprivation? The answer of courser is IMMIGRANTS. What happened last week is in fact, nothing new. Black South Africans have been killing black immigrants from Africa for years. Magazines such as New African, Africa, Africa Now, and others have been reporting on such violence for years now while the rest of Africa and the rest of the world refused to hear or pay attention. Instead of raising alarm, they praised SA as the “model” for reconciliation and racial harmony after apartheid. The so-called “truth and reconciliation” exercise focused on previous violence between white SA’s and black SA’s at the exclusion of violence that had or may be committed against immigrants from African countries.
If Mbeki is guilty, then we are all guilty for our naivety and ignorance that core reasons for racism and xenophobia are economic before it becomes political, and consequently criminal in that continuum. Finally, the world is paying attention to the timed bomb that SA has been sitting on since Apartheid died as an official state policy. Unfortunately, over 40 precious souls had give up their lives for the world to take notice. MAY THEY REST IN PEACE WITH THOSE WHO LOST THEY LIVES TO DEFEAT APARTHEID!
Nicholas
From: CCACH Community List
Sent: Thursday, May 22, 2008 7:16 PM
To: CCACH Community Services
Subject: RE: Mbeki is to blame for xenophobic attacks, says watchdog
A COUNTER RESPONSE TO NICHOLAS RESPONSE TO: Mbeki is to blame for xenophobic attacks, says watchdog
Dear Sir:
I write to commend you on the information services you provide and disseminate to the community. From time to time you have shared some feed backs you receive from the community as well – the current one from Nicholas on the “xenophobic violence” in South Africa is a case in point. I think that perhaps, you might initiate a forum for the community to have some dialogue and exchange of opinion not only about the information we receive, but on the various issues and current affairs as affect and impact us as citizens of the black race.
In any case, I do not agree with Mr. Nicholas that Mr. Mbeki of South is blameless of the accusation leveled against him in the spate of “xenophobic violence” going on in South Africa; or that African leaders are not responsible for the lion share of what ails Africa today.
In the aftermath of Apartheid, Mr. Thabo Mbeki has not lived up to his expectations as the successor of Mr. Nelson Mandela not only in South Africa, but in Africa as a whole. His stance and utterances on, and about very serious issues in South Africa in particular, and in various African countries in general, have invariably been termed “reckless” at best, and “irresponsible” at worst. For the longest of time, he denied that the AIDS/HIV pandemic was not an issue in South Africa where nearly one in 5 South Africans were infected by this deadly disease. On the economic and political crises in Zimbabwe, Mr. Mbeki has shamelessly buried his head in the sand to tell the world that there were no crises.
These are but a few examples of the reckless and irresponsible utterances from a man who inherited the mantle of the pre-eminent African, Nelson Mandela; and they have caused a lot of grief to the international community.
Apartheid for long was blamed for the intolerable plight of black South Africans; and rightly so. Colonialism was blamed for the rapacious pillaging and exploitation of African resources; the marginalization and enslavement of the African people in their own fatherland – and it goes without saying that of all the continents colonized by the white man, Africa was the most brutally colonized. But these twin evils of acts of man’s inhumanity to man are long gone now, albeit, the African people still live with their infamous legacies as evidenced in the disease, poverty, privation, hopelessness, helplessness, and powerlessness that is rife in Africa today. To point the accusatory finger at the “leaders from rich industrialized countries” for any of the ills of Africa today, is to absolve the callous malevolent despots of Africa, who are faithful only to their foreign bank accounts: official buccaneers with no sense of morality, justice, or even patriotism.
Sincerely,
Dr. Chukwuemeka P.M. Obiajunwa (PhD)
Executive Director
Africa We Care of Canada
Edmonton, Alberta
From: CCACH Community List
Sent: Monday, May 26, 2008 11:35 PM
To: CCACH Community List
Subject: RE: Mbeki is to blame for xenophobic attacks, says watchdog
COUNTER POINT !!!!
I stand on what I have written since the response from Dr. Obiajunwa (PhD) spend much time blaming Mr. Mbeki for the spread of AIDS, and as well, castigate him for everything that is wrong in South Africa but offer no evidence other that he disagrees with President Mbeki’s views on HIV\AIDS. Mr. Mbeki, like the rest of us is entitled to his views on HIV\AIDS or other issues without being made a criminal or target of wild accusations without substance. It is this kind of intolerance that leads many Africans to become dictators when they have the power to make one pay a price for his or her views. It is the kind of INTOLERANCE that leads to criminal activities for which Mr. Mbeki’s critics are self-righteously accusing him off. I listened for months, the criticisms of Mr. Mbeki because he had preferred, as a HEAD OF STATE OF SA to focus on other priorities rather than HIV\AIDS as the sole priority as the powers there be were demanding and imposing on all African leaders at the time. Some had suggested that he be indicted and tried for all the people who were dying of AIDS in South Africa. Let me also say, that these criticism and accusations were being leveled because he did not wish to channel the limited resources to single disease or priority at the expense of every other disease or other glaring priorities. He was also insulted and abused because he had suggested non-monetary solutions such as abstinence and other forms of sexual proprieties. In contrast, the critics were hailing Uganda as the model for fighting HIV\AID because it was open to buy intro whatever the so-called experts were saying without question. I recall reading an article at that time of one African country in that region that received over 8 million condoms in few months. There were so many condoms floating around to encourage people to have sex that children who were not into sex found a better use of those condoms. That was, they blew the condoms into balloons that they were using for football. But then something strange happened. The President of Uganda at the time was invited to attend and speak at an international conference on HIV\AIDS as the “model” country. But to the shock and dismay of his admirers, he mentioned abstinence and sex education as one of the ways for Africa to reduce the spread of the disease. That helped, and Mbeki did not seem as evil as others were trying to convince the rest of us to believe, and the criticisms and the wild accusations subsided with time.
However, Mbeki had been marked and scared for life because he dared to differ from the “expert” and the some of the NGOS. Now on his way out as the President of SA, his critics and accusers see the unfortunate deaths of desperate black immigrants from other African Countries by more desperate Black South Africans because of harsh economic realities, as one more opportunity to do more stabbing. Fortunately, these wild criticisms and accusations by SOME self-interest NGOs will not work because they fly in the face of reason, common logic, and the UNIVERSAL VALUE of fairness and respect. Blaming head of state for killings after what happened in Rwanda, Bosnia, Iraq and elsewhere, is a serious matter. No one should be allowed to make such accusations without evidence or substance. I dare say that those who make light of such crimes are the ones who may be prone to commit such atrocities. The rest of decent citizens of the world, whore care about the plight of sicknesses and diseases, poverty, and political abuses, hope that the zeal and self-agendas of some NGOS and non-profit organizations will not tarnish or bring the credibility of many professional NGOOS into disrepute. By the way, it is public record, as UN Ambassador on HIL\AIDS in Africa has stated several times over the years, the UN and the countries that produce expensive drugs did very little to make HIV\AIDS a priority so far as affordability of those drugs and treatment was concerned.
Perhaps, the African Diaspora who think they can do better running African countries should return and use their so called ideas and ingenuity to show the “dictators”, the “idiots” the “criminals” and the “thieves” how to run a country. I have always wandered why any African would want to be a politician or a head of state, but then, I also know that somebody has to do the “dirty” work that I and the rest of us good, smart, super-humans do not want to do.
In conclusion, I have nothing to gain from seemingly defending Mr. Mbeki or any African leader other than refute the insatiable appetite by some that once you are a politician or a leader of a nation you become an open season to be accused without evidence of foundation.
It has taking Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya and others 50 years or nearly, to realize stability social peace. And even so, we continue to cross our fingers. Many African countries, at one time or another have either killed or maimed immigrants from other African countries in harsh economic times and high unemployment. Any reader who knows about Africa can easily name a few countries without even trying to think hard. This does not make it right of course but it also means to appear to be so surprised about what South Africa is going through and may go through for the next decades as a young nation so far as multi-racial democracy is concerned is hypocritical and naive.
Cheerio!
Ameyaw
From: CCACH Community List
Sent: Thursday, May 29, 2008 1:13 PM
To: CCACH Community Services
Subject: RE: Mbeki is to blame for xenophobic attacks, says watchdog
Counter In Response:
Sirs/madams:
In as much as the “counter point” below provoked some emotions in me, I was not planning to respond to it because of its slant that seemed to miss the point I was addressing to earlier. I did not want to engage in an argument which usually serves no useful purpose except engender and stir up bad blood in which nobody wins.
In any case, since I have been able to put both names together to realize that the person holding the “briefs” for Mr. Mbeki is no other than my very good friend of many years, Mr. Nicholas Ameyaw, I have relented to respond to his “counter point”. I do this not only to correct the errors inherent in the “counter point”, but also address some issues raised therein that I am passionate about, and in agreement with.
In the first place, I never blamed Mr. Mbeki for the “spread of AIDS / HIV” in South Africa: an no stakeholder in the international community on the issue of this deadly disease has. Nobody, not me, has blamed Mr. Mbeki for the spread of AIDS / HIV in South Africa. What the world, and all well-meaning people has condemned is his reckless and irresponsible remark that there was no AIDS / HIV pandemic in South Africa when all empirical and verifiable evidence points to the contrary. There is a saying that “loose tongue sinks the ship”. South Africans have suffered dire consequences as a result of Mr. Mbeki’s utterances on this matter. I have stated facts as evidenced by knowledgeable people all over the world. I would welcome a reasoned and logical debate devoid of jingoistic emotions with anyone, any time any where on this issue.
As regards the best preventive measures against AIDS / HIV, which was never the issue I was addressing to, I have written quite elaborately and expansively in another medium. Please indulge me if I make bold to extract some snippet there from, and append herein: “I believe that the best AIDS/HIV prevention is abstinence. I know that the Africans are not monogamous by nature. African governments ought to legislate matrimonial relationship to make men stay with their wives, whether they marry one wife or ten wives.” The full text of this excerpt is in http://www.africawecare.org/forum/forum_2.html (Discussion Forum, captioned: How Best to Combat the Spread of AIDS/HIV in Africa – Condoms or Abstinence?) I would encourage anyone to read this piece to gain a fuller understanding as to what preponderantly, and in the main, causes the “spread” of AIDS / HIV; and the best way to curb the “spread” of AIDS/HIV.
The “counter point” posed a rhetorical question as to “why any African would want to be a politician or a head of state, but then, I also know that somebody has to do the “dirty” work that I and the rest of us good, smart, super-humans do not want to do.” It is the ultimate naivety to think or assert that being an African “politician or head of state is a “’dirty’ work” that those who occupy the positions make a sacrifice to do. If being “a politician or a head of state” in Africa were sacrificial why would they kill, maim, torture, and imprison their opponents to perpetuate themselves in power (African presidents-for-life) – the recent political upheavals in Kenya and Zimbabwe are but a few cases in point.
My mentor, Dr. George B.N. Ayittey, a pre-eminent authority on Africa, a Distinguished Professor of Economics at the American University, Washington, DC, wrote in his book, Africa in Chaos, and I quote:
“Government” as it is known in the West does not exist in much of Africa. Leaving aside the democratic requirement that a “government” must be by the people and for the people, one expects at a minimum a “government” to be responsive to the needs of the people, or at (the very) least, to perform some services for its people. But even this most basic requirement for a “government” is lacking in Africa. “Government” as an entity is totally divorced from the people, perceived by those running it as a vehicle not to serve but to fleece the people. Dishonesty, thievery, and peculation pervade the public sector. Public servants embezzle state funds; high-ranking ministers are on the take. The chief bandit is the head of state himself. For example, President Mobutu Sese Seko of Congo was not satisfied with his personal fortune of US$10 billion; he stole an entire gold-mining region, Kilo-moto, which covers 32,000 square miles and reportedly has reserves of 100 tons of gold.
If you care to read more to get enlightened and elucidated, please go to http://www.africawecare.org/comparative_analysis.html (The Vampire Africa State).
To trump up “Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya and others 50 years or nearly, to realize stability social peace” presupposing these countries as shining examples of stable social peace is nothing more than wishful thinking. We did recently witness that “stable social peace” in Kenya lately. In Nigeria, the 8th largest producer and exporter of crude oil in the world, and yet its teachers go for months without pay; with unemployment / underemployment of more than 75%; has no roads, hospitals, schools or any infrastructure to write home about; with chronic and perpetual blackouts; no viable national airline, etc. The seething social discontent in Nigeria is a ticking time bomb the symptoms of which is evidenced in the oil pipe lines routinely being blown up, sending reverberating shock waves around the world. This is not the time and place to get into this discourse.
Suffice it to say that we all know that Africa has monumental problems. To bury our heads in the sand and pretend other wise, or to not place the blame squarely where it belongs is a reckless and irresponsible posturing that rivals Mr. Mbeki’s.
Sincerely,
Dr. Chukwuemeka P.M. Obiajunwa (PhD)
Executive Director
Africa We Care of Canada
Edmonton, Alberta
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