Xenophobic attitudes rooted in unresolved tribal divisions

XENOPHOBIA in South Africa is utterly unacceptable and must be addressed immediately.

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We have reached a point where statements and pledges are insufficient; we demand concrete actions from the government, the Human Rights Commission, and the Equality Court. Their focus on gender issues while ignoring the rise in xenophobia is troubling.

Xenophobia is being used as a political tool by the ANC and the Patriotic Front.

The ANC can deny this, but the reality is that xenophobic attitudes are rooted in unresolved tribal divisions among Black South Africans. Certain Cabinet ministers, such as Aaron Motsoaledi and Phophi Ramathuba, have even exploited these sentiments for their political gain, dismissing the suffering of traumatised foreigners. Minister Ramathuba’s rise to Premier of Limpopo was overshadowed by the political exploitation of a sick Zimbabwean woman.

Her nationality and sad state of being unwell were insulted in a manner that made the humiliation suffered by Black people before 1994 seem minor by comparison.