Zimbabwe condemns ongoing violence against foreigners in South Africa
Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe has condemned the ongoing violence against foreign workers in South Africa, linking the atrocities against foreign laborers to tribal tensions.
“I would like to express our sense of shock and disgust as we abhor the incident that happened in Durban, where some five or six people were burnt to death deliberately by some members of the South African Zulu community,” Mugabe said.
Addressing the nation on the 35th anniversary of the country’s independence in the capital, Harare, Mugabe said, “That act can never be condoned by anyone. We say on our own behalf, on behalf of SADC (Southern African Development Community) and indeed on behalf of the African Union, that it must never happen again in South Africa or in any other country on the continent.”
The 91-year-old leader of Zimbabwe serves as the head of the African Union and regional SADC bloc.
“We are glad President [Jacob] Zuma has assured us that this is not the South African way. It’s the way of some misguided South Africans,” he further said.
Despite the comments, the Zimbabwean government is reportedly making preparations to repatriate some of its nationals who have been affected by the violence in South Africa over the past weeks and who wish to return home. About 1,000 Zimbabweans, who used to live in the port city of Durban, are said to be returning to Zimbabwe starting Sunday.
The 250,000-strong Zimbabwean community is believed to be the largest expatriate group in South Africa. Approximately 10 percent of the country’s 50-million population are believed to be workers from another African country or Asia.
The outburst of the recent xenophobic emotions is mainly attributed to a provocative speech by the leader of the Zulu tribe, King Goodwill Zwelithini. In his speech last month, he linked the high crime rate in South Africa to foreigners and said foreigners must leave.
South Africa has one of the highest crime rates compared to most other countries. A UN survey for 1998 to 2000 ranked South Africa first in terms of the number of rapes and second in terms of the level of assault and murder among 60 countries studied.
Most South African emigrants have cited the high crime rate as a big influence in their decision to leave.
XLS/HJL/SS
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