By Donald Ude
South Africa, the strongest economic hub of Africa has come under the eyes of the storm as world and religious leaders have continued to vehemently condemn the forceful eviction of African nationals from South Africa by the predominantly Zulu youths.
The Zulu South African youths have taken to the major Cities and streets of South Africa protesting what the call the influx of illegal immigrants who they accuse of taking up jobs that belong to them and also putting a strain on the public facilities. The youths have also accused the government of president Cyril Ramaphosa and the law enforcement agencies of not doing enough to evict the African immigrants and have therefore given the African immigrants 30th June as the deadline for all of them to leave South Africa.
Several houses, business and investments of the foreign African nationals have been destroyed while some have been killed. Several of these African immigrants have fled to other countries regarded as safe havens while several others have been evacuated by government of their countries. As of today, the 30th of June more than 271 Nigerians have arrived the Murtala Muhammad International Airport, Lagos bringing the total number of evacuated Nigerians to 600 courtesy of the Nigerian foreign ministry, even as violent protests and rampage by Zulu youths have continued unabated in the country.
Many have called the onslaught an ‘Afro-xenobia’ and therefore questioned why it is targeted at only the African immigrants. This just as several people have continued to recall how other African countries rallied in support of their black South African brothers and sisters at the peak of the Apartheid regime of the white Boer South African government. When the Boer South African administration hauled several Zulu citizens into prison such as the late Dr. Nelson Mandela who spent up to 27 years in prison and became the president of South Africa at the collapse of the pariah Apartheid regime.
It can also be recalled that during the heinous days of the Apartheid rule in South Africa, several Zulu citizens were killed as several others fled the country to other African countries as they were granted asylum. And in response, other countries especially African countries reeled out a lot of economic sanctions against the weird Apartheid government who decided to subjugate the indigenous Zulu citizens to a lot of unspeakable inhuman conditions.
Today, more than 50, 000 African immigrants have fled while several thousands are stranded being driven to the streets, Embassies and international airports. Some world leaders and religious leaders such Pope Leo, President Donald Trump, Rev. Dr Chris Oyakhilome etc. have lent their voices in condemning the onslaught of black Zulu citizens of South Africa against other African immigrants calling it a repeat of history of the Apartheid regime in South Africa, and therefore caution against the escalation of the xenophobic attack to the level of Rwandan genocide where the Bhutos who blamed the tutsi ethnic nationals for their woes attacked and killed more than 800, 0000 Tutsies in what was seen as the most heinous genocide the world had ever seen.
Some of these world leaders and religious leaders have also cautioned against the escalation of the xenophobic onslaught to the level of destruction of the South African hitherto bourgeoning economy which they say the African immigrants they are chasing away helped to build siting the incident of the wide spread genocide that occurred in the Yugoslavian economy under president Slobadan Milosovic that saw to the destruction of the country’s economy with the killing and displacement of several others.
Apart from invoking the dark history of genocide and Apartheid, a South African Zulu popular youth leader and politician, Julius Malema has warned against the Weaponization of Xenophobia to perpetrate violence against fellow Americans which he said could spiral into a chain reaction of violent xenophobic onslaughts against African interests in other African countries in a way of retaliation . Mr. Malema stated that the Zulu youths of South Africa were directing their anger and frustration on the wrong people who never took their jobs and opportunities from them adding that socio-cultural and economic factors should be blamed ” Zimbabwe and other African citizens are not to blame. The fact is that the jobs are not there and you cannot do the type of work they do” Malema opined.
Recently, the percentage of South African jobless youths has risen to 23 percent. Apart from unemployment, crime rate has continued to rise almost uncontrollably. And what started as government policy towards recovery of lands illegally taken over by foreign immigrants and repatriation of illegal immigrants by the law enforcement agencies has now been hyjacked by the mob who accuse the government of president Cyril Ramaphosa of not doing enough to send the African immigrants away hence, the cogent reason to take laws into their hands and thus relegating Pan Africanism to the background.
