Zuma gave few details of government plans, but said the
violence was driven by “criminal elements” as well as friction between
foreigners and locals.
However, several thousand demonstrators marched through
central Johannesburg on Thursday to protest against a spate of deadly attacks
on immigrants, after further raids by the authorities on suspected gang
hideouts.
Watched by police, crowds sang songs denouncing xenophobia
and carried banners that read “We are all Africans” as migrant workers crowded
balconies, shouting their support.
“This march sends an important message to the world, to
Africans,” David Makhura, premier of Gauteng province of which Johannesburg is
the capital, told the demonstrators. “We are going to defeat xenophobia like we
defeated apartheid.
“We are here to make sure that South Africa is a country of
peace for all.” Soldiers were deployed in Johannesburg this week to aid police
in operations against hostels housing South African men who are accused of
targeting migrants from Zimbabwe, Malawi, Mozambique and other African
countries.
At least seven people have been killed in three weeks of
unrest that have revived memories of xenophobic bloodshed in 2008, when 62
people were killed. “I am here to make a stand, to say ‘Not in my name’,” Zain
Mayet, 20, one of the marchers, told AFP.
“Keeping quiet makes me as guilty as those who are
committing violence. “We are here to demonstrate that not everyone in South
Africa is a criminal who attacks foreign nationals.” UN chief Ban Ki-moon
condemned the violence and called for “all efforts” to be made to avoid future
attacks.
“He welcomes the public expressions of the many South
Africans who have been calling for peaceful coexistence and harmony with
foreign nationals,” Ban’s spokesman said in a statement.
Two people were arrested late Wednesday when police, backed
by soldiers, stormed a workers’ hostel in the city’s crowded Alexandra
township. In total, over 300 people have been detained. The unrest erupted in
the port city of Durban about three weeks ago and later spread to Johannesburg,
the economic capital.
Many immigrants have been forced to flee their homes and
abandon their small shops as marauding mobs hunted down foreigners at night.
“Over 5,000 people from Malawi, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Democratic Republic of
Congo and Burundi still seek refuge in displacement camps,” Medecins Sans
Frontieres (MSF – Doctors Without Borders) said in a statement.
“Injured Malawian and Zimbabwean men told medics that they
are too afraid to openly seek medical treatment for their wounds and fractures
for fear of further attack.” More than 20 years since the end of apartheid,
many South Africans believe the lack of opportunities for young blacks and a
severe jobs shortage has led to deep frustration.
One Mozambican man was stabbed to death in Alexandra
township last Saturday in scenes that provoked widespread outrage after the
killing was captured in graphic newspaper photographs. Alexandra, where Nelson
Mandela lived as a young man, is one of the most troubled parts of Johannesburg
and is located next to the upmarket business district of Sandton.
Regional relations have been strained by the attacks, with
Zimbabwe, Malawi and Mozambique organising for some worried citizens to return
home. Neighbouring Mozambique said more than 2,000 citizens had fled the
violence. Five buses also arrived back in Zimbabwe on Wednesday.
Source- Vanguard.
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