Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, South African Home Affairs Minister, said to Parliament that "we need to fight and resist all forms of discrimination and prejudice including homophobia."
Originally uploaded by Pan-African News Wire Photo File
THIRD FORCE COULD BE BEHIND VIOLENCE: MINISTER
A third force could be behind the recent escalation in violence against foreigners living in South Africa, home affairs minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula said on Tuesday.
Briefing the National Assembly's home affairs committee,
Mapisa-Nqakula said it was strange that people who had lived together for many years were suddenly at each other's throats.
"There could be people who are stoking fires because these are people who having been living side by side for a very long time," she said.
The department was busy organising a national indaba, where the issue would be dealt with at length.
Her statement follows Sunday's attack on residents, mostly from Zimbabwe, Malawi and Mozambique, in Alexandra township on the northern edge of Johannesburg.
The attack left one foreigner dead and 60 injured.
In March, two foreign nationals were killed when a crowd of people assaulted them and set their shacks alight in the Brazzaville informal settlement in Atteridgeville, Pretoria.
Home affairs committee chairman Patrick Chauke said it was baffling that only foreigners of African origin were being targeted.
"We do not understand why it is mostly African people who are at the receiving end," he said.
He called on churches and other community-based organisations to assist in finding a solution to the problem.
"This thing is a bad reflection on our country," he said.
JOHANNESBURG 13 May 2008 Sapa
ALEX RESIDENTS PELT POLICE WITH STONES
Chaos broke out in Alexandra again On Tuesday night when residents pelted policemen with stones, the SABC reported.
In response police fired rubber bullets at residents.
Gauteng spokesman Superintendent Lungelo Dlamini could not confirm the incident.
"I have not been informed of such incident, I will contact you when somebody from Alexandra has called to inform me of the latest developments," he said.
Attacks on foreigners by local residents began on Sunday and
continued into Monday night and early Tuesday morning.
At least two people have died so far and over 60 were injured.
JOHANNESBURG 13 May 2008 Sapa
ALEXANDRA MOB KILLS THIRD MAN
A man was shot dead and another injured when violence flared up in Alexandra on Monday evening, bringing the death toll in suspected xenophobic attacks to three, police said on Tuesday.
Constable Neria Malefetse said a total of 39 people were arrested in the Johannesburg township on Monday evening.
"A man was shot and killed and one was injured," she said, adding that both victims were South African.
Another two people were killed on Sunday night - one of them also South African - and dozens were injured when an angry mob took to the streets and targeted foreigners who residents say are not welcome here.
Malefetse said although the violence was aimed at foreigners, two of the three people killed since Sunday were South Africans.
"This is still attributed to the violence that have been taking place but there are other criminals taking advantage of the situation and people are starting to loot the area."
The Public Order police unit has been deployed to monitor the
situation which had quieted down by Tuesday morning.
"The police have managed to calm the situation down," Malefetse said.
JOHANNESBURG 13 May 2008 Sapa
POLITICAL ORGANISATIONS SLAM XENOPHOBIC ATTACKS
Xenophobic attacks on foreign nationals in Alexandra north of
Johannesburg went against the freedom and democracy that was fought for in South Africa, political organisations on Tuesday.
Said African National Congress spokesman Tiyani Rikhotso: "Such acts can only take society backwards and open the wounds of racism and intolerance against which so many of our people fought.
"The killings in Atteridgeville earlier this year and recent attacks on Somalis and others are an attack not only on foreigners, but are an assault on the values of our democratic society."
He said the ANC repeated its call to all state institutions and security agencies to apply the country's immigration laws in a consistent and even-handed manner.
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) urged the
Johannesburg Metropolitan Council to provide shelter for those who lost their homes or could not return home for fear of attack.
"We also urge the Department of Home Affairs to do more to assist immigrants," said Cosatu Gauteng Provincial Secretary, Siphiwe Mgcina.
He said that the underlying cause of xenophobia was the intolerable levels of poverty, unemployment and crime, and the shortage of housing in poor communities.
"People's frustration is understandable, but there can be no excuse for placing the blame for these problems on immigrants who have been forced to flee from even worse conditions in other parts of Africa, especially Zimbabwe.
"The poor working-class South African and immigrant people have a common interest in fighting to improve their conditions and fighting each other will only make the problems even worse," Mgcina said.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) applauded the arrest of 87 people in Alexandra.
Chairman of the DA Caucus for Johannesburg, Vasco da Gama, commented on the incidents that he witnessed on the ground in the last 48 hours in Alexandra.
He said: "The community of Alex are grateful for the strong action taken by police in arresting 87 people involved in rioting and looting in Alex. It is unfortunate that this has not been enough to prevent 3 murders, widespread damage, theft and allegations of rape."
He said that the government needed to act urgently to get to the root of the problem.
"It must deal with the causes of xenophobia both in terms of
improving service delivery and creating an economic climate that creates job opportunities.
"It is also clear that people are angry that the government cannot control immigration," he said.
The Young Communist League (YCL) said that the xenophobic attacks were undermining international struggles and solidarity which were a cornerstone of "our hard-won freedom and democracy."
"We believe these actions have no credence and role in our society. We further believe that foreign nationals should not be viewed and treated as inferior beings, but as equal human beings that need to be treated with respect and dignity," said spokesman Castro Ngobese.
"It is extremely appalling and regrettable that some sections of our communities are resorting to xenophobic and discriminatory attacks to undermine the advances we are making in reversing the apartheid created xenophobic mentality."
CAPE TOWN 13 May 2008 Sapa
XENOPHOBIA A SOCIAL CRIME: MINISTER
South Africans have to understand the "political necessity" to accept refugees in the country, Safety and Security Minister Charles Nqakula said on Tuesday.
Asked at a media briefing at parliament about the apparent increase in xenophobic attacks on refugees, he said it was a social crime, which was very difficult to police using conventional policing methods.
"So, that matter is not essentially a police matter. The police only come afterwards, when there is already an eruption... they are reacting rather than proacting.
"What needs to happen rather is the communities should understand the political necessity for them to accommodate people who come from other countries. They should have an understanding of that," Nqakula said.
Government's intervention was via communication to educate people about the issue and to persuade them against violent behaviour towards foreign nationals.
If foreign nationals committed crime, it was the responsibility of the police to deal with it.
"But as government, we keep on imploring our people to desist from such behaviour."
People who came into SA do so on several grounds, and therefore they could not simply be violently ejected from the country.
Some of the people who had become victims of xenophobic attacks were actually permanent residents in South Africa.
"And therefore it is very, very wrong of people to deal with this matter in the way that they are doing," he said.
JOHANNESBURG 13 May 2008 Sapa
TEAM NEEDED TO ADDRESS XENOPHOBIA
Government should set up an interdepartmental task team to address xenophobia in South Africa, The Consortium for Refugees and Migrant workers (CORMSA) said on Tuesday.
In a statement, CORMSA said: "Despite repeated calls over the past 18 months from civil society, there is no co-ordinated strategy on the part of government to address mob violence targeting non-nationals."
The human rights group said there was a need for a "comprehensive national strategy" to combat and address xenophobic violence.
The strategy should identify the source of conflict involving the foreigners and not rush to deport the illegal immigrants.
It should also put in place mechanisms to reintegrate into their communities those people displaced by xenophobic attacks.
CORMSA said there was a need to include foreigners in community policing forums so that conflicts could be addressed at the local level before they escalated.
The recent attacks on foreigners in Alexandra amounted to hate crimes, and should not be treated as isolated incidents but as a national crisis, CORMSA said.
JOHANNESBURG 13 May 2008 Sapa
TENSION SIMMERS IN ALEX
Alexandra residents were not appeased by calls for unity at the end of a tense Tuesday in the sprawling township in which xenophobic violence erupted on Sunday night.
As Safety and Security MEC Firoz Cachalia called on the community, during a mass meeting, to allow the police to do their work regarding illegal immigrants, residents booed and howled.
Some exited the community hall, saying they should "toyi-toyi". Shouts of "we are overpopulated", rang through the hall as the MEC addressed the crowd.
Many cited unemployment as a basis for the animosity toward
foreigners.
"They steal our jobs because they work for little money," one woman said.
The meeting was held with the residents following the xenophobic attacks which left two people dead, over 60 injured and dozens displaced.
Those displaced gathered at the Alexandra police station seeking protection, aid and shelter after they fell victim to the attacks.
At an earlier media briefing, Cachalia said the violent attacks carried out were not just "spontaneous acts of xenophobic hatred".
The attacks on foreigners by local residents began on Sunday and continued into Monday night and early Tuesday morning.
"Let's be very clear that these were criminal acts carried out in violation of our country's laws, its constitution and its commitment to human rights," said Cachalia.
He said there was also a degree of misinformation about the attacks as one of the people killed was a South African and a South African family had also been displaced.
"We must call a spade a spade... these are criminal acts."
Cachalia said steps were being taken to ensure that the displaced were being temporarily accommodated and looked after.
On Tuesday, the Red Cross was handing out food parcels and toilet rolls to foreigners who had gathered at the police station.
NGOs, the City of Johannesburg, the SA Council of Churches, the SA Human Rights Commission and the Gender Commission among others have also pledged support and aid in dealing with the situation.
Maria and Serve, a couple from Mozambique, who lived in Alexandra came to the police station before 8pm on Monday night after they heard that foreigners were in danger.
Maria sat against the wall of the police station with a neatly packed suitcase containing everything she owned. Serve, a bricklayer who worked in Rosebank, said the couple had not eaten since they arrived at the police station and he had not gone to work for fear of being targeted.
Gift Sithole, a Zimbabwean national, was assaulted and forced from his home. He sat on the pavement with his hand covering a large cut on the back of his head.
He too had not eaten and had no provisions with him.
Willet Sibanda, 28, was forced to seek the safety of the station after men she described as 'Zulus' threatened to rape her younger sister, Thando.
She said the men from a hostel in Alexandra broke down her door on Monday night and told her to leave everything behind and get out.
"They insulted us. They screamed, they shouted and said get out...they said leave everything. They demanded my cellphone and money...[they] touched me all over."
Sibanda described how the group of men told her to stand behind a curtain because they wanted to rape her little sister. After a while the men shouted at Sibanda and her sibling to leave.
Because Sibanda is in the country illegally, she was told she would be taken to Doornfontein but she would rather go back to Zimbabwe.
"I want to go back to my country, it's not easy to stay in South Africa.
"Anywhere in South Africa, we are not safe... we came here for jobs and this is what we get," she said.
Police spokesman Director Govindsamy Mariemuthoo said the situation was being monitored and that police had met with various "roleplayers" to find a solution to the problem.
He confirmed that two deaths were reported due to the attacks and over 60 people had been injured.
Chief executive at the Alexandra clinic, Abel Mangolele, said that just under 150 people had been brought in with injuries sustained during the attacks.
Political parties and human rights watchdogs have reacted to the attacks and said more was needed to be done to address the problem of xenophobia which was related to poverty and unemployment experienced by South Africans.
SA Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) chief executive, advocate Tseliso Thipanyane, said government needed to address poverty and needed to do more.
He said these attacks had been occurring over the last ten years, and it was about time ways were found to deal more effectively with them.
ANC spokesman Tiyani Rikhotso said: "Such acts can only take society backwards and open the wounds of racism and intolerance against which so many of our people fought.
"The killings in Atteridgeville earlier this year and recent attacks on Somalis and others are an attack not only on foreigners, but are an assault on the values of our democratic society."
The Congress of SA Trade Unions (Cosatu) urged the Johannesburg Metropolitan Council to provide shelter for those who lost their homes or could not return home for fear of attack.
"We also urge the Department of Home Affairs to do more to assist immigrants," said Cosatu Gauteng provincial secretary, Siphiwe Mgcina.
He said the underlying cause of xenophobia was the intolerable level of poverty, unemployment and crime, and the shortage of housing in poor communities.
"People's frustration is understandable, but there can be no excuse for placing the blame for these problems on immigrants who have been forced to flee from even worse conditions in other parts of Africa, especially Zimbabwe.
The Democratic Alliance applauded the arrests of alleged attackers in Alexandra.
DA Caucus chairman for Johannesburg, Vasco da Gama, said government needed to act urgently to get to the root of the problem.
"It must deal with the causes of xenophobia both in terms of
improving service delivery and creating an economic climate that creates job opportunities.
"It is also clear that people are angry that the government cannot control immigration," he said.
The Young Communist League (YCL) said the xenophobic attacks were "extremely appalling and regrettable" and were undermining international struggles and solidarity, which were a cornerstone of the country's hard-won freedom and democracy.
"We believe these actions have no credence and role in our society. We further believe that foreign nationals should not be viewed and treated as inferior beings, but as equal human beings that need to be treated with respect and dignity," said spokesman Castro Ngobese.
JOHANNESBURG 13 May 2008 Sapa
ANC CALLS ON ALEXANDRA TO BE CALM
The African National Congress on Tuesday night called on members of the Alexandra community to remain calm and to allow police to handle the situation.
ANC Alexandra spokesman, Pule Phalatse, said the party had attended a meeting held at the Sankopano community centre on the corner on Selbourne and 12th avenue in Alexandra.
"The ANC calls on the community to be vigilant and not to be used by sinister forces and criminal elements that are trying to destabilise the township."
This follows violent attacks on foreigners by local Alexandra
residents on Sunday and which continued into Monday night and early Tuesday morning.
The ANC had called several meetings in different wards throughout the township to assess and try to deal with the many issues raised in the meetings.
It was also working with law enforcement agencies, including the police services, in identifying and isolating the criminal elements that were taking advantage of the situation.
"We would like the community in Alexandra to be calm and allow the police to handle the situation," said Phalatse.
The meeting was also addressed by the MEC for safety and security, Firoz Cachalia.
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