South Africa’s anti-migrant rallies trigger repatriations

{"text":[[{"start":7.25,"text":"West African governments have begun repatriation flights for their citizens after a surge in anti-immigrant sentiment and violence in South Africa triggered public outrage and diplomatic rows across the continent."}],[{"start":20.45,"text":"Ghana repatriated around 300 citizens from Johannesburg to Accra this week, becoming the first African country to organise evacuations due to xenophobia and growing concerns about the safety of their nationals, with a second chartered flight expected on Sunday. "}],[{"start":35.9,"text":"Nigeria, which has one of the largest expatriate communities in South Africa, has also begun preparing for evacuations. Foreign minister Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu said 130 Nigerians had registered for repatriation flights so far, while the country’s senate described the attacks as “barbaric” and announced plans to send a delegation to Pretoria to discuss measures to safeguard Nigerians."}],[{"start":61.5,"text":"Social media posts of assaults and intimidation in South Africa against other Africans — including a widely shared video showing a Ghanaian man being confronted by a crowd during an anti-immigration rally — have pushed the issue up the diplomatic agenda in recent weeks."}],[{"start":77.45,"text":"Ghana summoned South Africa’s high commissioner and has urged the African Union to place xenophobia in South Africa on the agenda of its June meeting. Mozambique’s president Daniel Chapo said earlier this month he had discussed the matter after meeting South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, while Zimbabwe, Kenya, Malawi and Lesotho have issued advisory warnings to their citizens."}],[{"start":101.4,"text":"South Africa, the continent’s most industrialised economy, has an immigrant population of about 4mn, equivalent to roughly 6 per cent of the population, said Alan Hirsch, a former presidential adviser and senior research fellow at the New South Institute think-tank in Johannesburg."}],[{"start":120.05000000000001,"text":"By comparison, immigrants account for more than 20 per cent of the population in countries such as Canada and Australia."}],[{"start":127.55000000000001,"text":"Most African immigrants to South Africa are legally resident, but there is widespread belief among many locals that the illegal numbers are far greater and are causing higher unemployment."}],[{"start":138.95000000000002,"text":"During periodic waves of unrest and economic strain, the violence has also often been arbitrary, with Black foreign nationals targeted regardless of their legal status. "}],[{"start":148.8,"text":"Outbreaks of anti-foreigner violence in 2008 killed more than 60 people and displaced tens of thousands, while similar unrest in 2015 and 2019 damaged relations with countries such as Nigeria, Zimbabwe and Mozambique."}],[{"start":null,"text":"

"}],[{"start":163.85000000000002,"text":"The issue has been fuelled by politicians seeking to tap into public anger over unemployment and failing services. Herman Mashaba, leader of the ActionSA party, has campaigned for Johannesburg’s upcoming mayoral elections on a populist anti-immigration platform. "}],[{"start":180.10000000000002,"text":"During a recent rally in Soweto, he pointed at nearby informal shops that he said were run by immigrants as evidence the country had lost control of its borders, telling the crowd if he was elected: “We will have a special unit to make sure they do inspections on who runs the shops in our communities.”"}],[{"start":198.00000000000003,"text":"After Mashaba left, his supporters entered the shops and demanded the owners show them their papers to prove they were legally in the country."}],[{"start":205.95000000000002,"text":"“It’s become a tradition now,” said one Nigerian migrant, who did not want to give his name for fear of retaliation. “We just remind ourselves that it’s election season and foreigners are always the scapegoats at such times.”"}],[{"start":219.00000000000003,"text":"The crisis has reopened longstanding questions about xenophobia in South Africa, which has long cast itself as a champion of the global south."}],[{"start":227.70000000000002,"text":"Critics accuse South Africa of betraying the ideals of pan-African solidarity that sustained the anti-apartheid struggle, with some online commentators calling for a boycott of South African goods."}],[{"start":240.15,"text":"Adebola Williams, a Lagos-based media entrepreneur and an alumnus of the prestigious Desmond Tutu Leadership Fellowship, said it pained him to see the ideals of pan-Africanism degenerating into Afrophobia. In the 1960s, his parents and grandparents gave their lunch money to the South African cause, he said. “This continent will do better when we collaborate,” he added."}],[{"start":null,"text":""}],[{"start":263,"text":"South Africa’s government has condemned attacks on migrants while seeking to counter what it said was misinformation surrounding the violence. Foreign minister Ronald Lamola said reports that foreign nationals had been killed in recent protests were unverified and warned against disinformation and “megaphone diplomacy”."}],[{"start":282.1,"text":"Still, Lamola emphasised that “no grievance, however legitimate, can justify violence, scapegoating or attacks on people based on their nationality”. He also warned South Africans and politicians against taking the law into their own hands."}],[{"start":295.85,"text":"“We cannot accept citizens usurping the powers of law enforcement agencies and unleashing violence on other human beings,” he added."}],[{"start":303.5,"text":"The xenophobic violence comes against a backdrop of deep economic frustration in South Africa, where the official unemployment rate stands at 33 per cent and almost 40 per cent of the population lives in poverty."}],[{"start":316.4,"text":"These conditions have created fertile ground for anti-migrant mobilisation, particularly in poorer communities where residents compete for inadequate job opportunities, housing and public services."}],[{"start":328,"text":"Analysts say that migrants are frequently blamed for problems rooted in state failures and weak economic growth."}],[{"start":334.6,"text":"“It is unlikely that pressure from undocumented immigrants on jobs and public services would be a burden on South Africans if jobs and houses were not so scarce and public services were not as deficient as they are,” said Hirsch."}],[{"start":347.70000000000005,"text":"South Africa had failed to develop a coherent strategy against repeated outbreaks of anti-migrant violence and resentment, Hirsch added."}],[{"start":355.50000000000006,"text":"“There has been no systematic response. This is a matter of extreme embarrassment and, indeed, shame.”"}],[{"start":363.40000000000003,"text":"Additional reporting by David Pilling from Lagos"}],[{"start":374.15000000000003,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1780283344_4097.mp3"}