Maybe we (still) need the ANC – especially those of us in the chattering classes and more especially those whining whites who think the ANC is destroying the country. The reason for this, I think, is that the ANC is for the moment the only party with a chance of keeping our fragile and fractured society together.
There has been much discussion on this Blog and elsewhere about the xenophobic violence and why it has spread so quickly to many parts of South Africa. The denialists within government have predictably blamed a ¨third force¨ and others wonder whether it is because foreigners have been allowed into South Africa too easily or whether those foreigners work too hard and therefore take the jobs of South Africans with a lower work ethic.
I am not sure there is one definitive answer to the question. What I am sure of is that it shows very clearly that we are not a very healthy society. The vast disparities between rich and poor, the history of racial oppression, the fracturing of family life through the migrant labour system and the homelands policies of the apartheid government have all contributed to the present fractured state of our nation.
I suspect many poor people see the wealth around them and compare that with their own lives and then they look for someone to blame. The problem is in South Africa there are so many people to ¨blame¨: foreigners, yes, but who is next? Homosexuals? Xhosas? Vendas? Whites? Woman?
This is why the spreading of the violence is so scary. It reminds us that where the social dislocation is so profound, the society is inherently unstable and it will only take one charismatic politician to whip up the sentiments of the dispossessed against the ¨enemy¨of choice.
That is why I wonder whether we are not – despite all their faults – lucky to have a party like the ANC in power. Although some of Jacob Zuma´s supporters have been seen wearing ¨100% Zulu Boy¨ T-shirts at times, on the whole the ANC is very much against tribalism and the scapegoating of minority groups. Even white South Africans who can easily be scapegoated are seldom vilified as a group.
Thabo Mbeki has often ranted against the racism of many white South Africans and while he has sometimes done this in a dishonest manner to try and hide his parties own shortcomings (remember the ¨fishers of corrupt men¨statement about those who dared suggest the arms deal was not Kosher), but he has never vilified white people and has never whipped up emotions against white people in a way that would allow the dispossed to think it would be right to attack whites and destroy their homes.
The same goes for whipping up feelings against gay men and lesbians (which was one of the first groups Mugabe turned against after he lost the referendum in 2000).
The problem is at present there is no other political party with the auro and the mythical liberation credentials of the ANC who are strong or credible enough to keep all the anger in check.
So if I was a white, middle class South African with property and a job (oh yes, I am actually one) I would have thanked my lucky stars for the ANC.
Pierre your post is insulting to all South Africans.
If the UK experienced this flood of immigration, and crime, and if their police force were not so efficient, Enoch Powels visions of ‘rivers of blood’ would be a reality.
Why do European governments fear immigration so? Because they fear the rise of the right wing. No, not all individuals react like this when faced with immigration, but some can and its the state’s responsibility to make sure a stable environment is created for integration.
Instead, in our country everybody but especially the poor has to deal with a corrupt police force, and corrupt public administration. This only makes matters worse.
Don’t get what I’m saying? Well look at it this way. There used to be gay clubs in this country in the city centers, even when we had an autocratic regime. There used to be allot more mixing of races in public space (think Yeoville and Hillbrow). A efficient state guarantees personal freedom.
The ANC IS the problem. It is not governing.
The ANC has made allot of appeals to their supporters to stop the violence and this violence has not dissipated. Why are people not listening?
The two organisations that we have to thank our lucky stars for is Cosatu and the SACP. Both who seem more committed to fairness and good governance than the ANC.
Other organisations spring to mind as well: The TAC, and AfriForum. We have to bolster this civil society ASAP.
Xolela Mangcu ads this accusation to the ANC charge sheet:
“”the violence is the leadership’s own creation in one other important way. Long before we had xenophobia, the leadership of the liberation movements planted a violent culture in our communities in the 1980s. They legitimised violence as the mode of political practice in the townships in the name of organisational and ideological hegemony. There is something about this violence reminiscent of that period. This is the impi-like organisation, the open brandishing of weapons, the dancing around burning people. The criminals who were recruited into the revolution are now in control of the state.
The past is making its presence felt in a frighteningly ferocious way. And that is because the brutalisation of any group of people is not a tap the leadership can turn on and off as it pleases. And now they are afraid of their own political Frankensteins. What we have been experiencing has been as much about xenophobia as it has been a demonstration that we do not have a government in this country. We do not have a leadership that can attend to the wounded and brutalised soul of this nation.”
The problem is that middleclass South Africans like yourself has been so enamored with the ANC because you’ve lived the good life.
Just like the farmers in Zimbabwe who told the world that Bob’s Zim was honky-dory, because for them it was, while ZANU-PF was steadily persecuting the opposition and killing democracy.
Mugabe vilified whites only his power was threatened. The ANC’s control has as of yet not been. The ANC can easily do the same. Our real bulwark against such cynical racial scape goating will be the SACP, Cosatu and civil society.
I find the ANC guilty as charged. They have been an unmitigated disaster.
How can a country function without being governed. Absurd and sensetionalist statement should be the preserve of the Mangcu’s and the Malala’s, the get paid for that. Disagree with the way its been governed, do not say its not been governed.
In fact, in many other countries government do not put up with the likes of Mangcu. Hhhmm, I wonder if he thinks Tokyo is one of the criminals he speaks of.
> How can a country function without being governed.
That’s my point.
My point is that the country IS functioning. I guess you have to prove why you say that it is not functioning.
Allow me to base my take on the following: “This is why the spreading of the violence is so scary. It reminds us that where the social dislocation is so profound, the society is inherently unstable and it will only take one charismatic politician to whip up the sentiments of the dispossessed against the ¨enemy¨of choice.” This is exactly the kind of situation that Adolf Hitler exploited, and Idi Amin, and Ndombassi, and Charles Taylor, and Robert Mugabe, and … (One cannot name all.) I agree with Wessel that Mugabe only used this strategy once his power was threatened. So did many of the others mentioned (and not mentioned) above. On the other hand, others like Hitler and Amin used this strategy to obtain power, not to keep it. The ANC’s power has not yet been threatened to an extent where we might see such a situation developing, though some tensions in the ‘tri-partheid’ Alliance (how easy it was to use terminology similar to ‘apartheid’ after the struggle?), and the recent happenings at Polokwane, have at times suggested a power struggle, which can in fact give rise to exactly such a situation. I do not agree that the ANC is the stabilizing power at this stage in SA – or that it is actually governing SA to the peoples’ best advantage in terms of the Constitution, and I would therefore not ‘thank my lucky stars for the ANC’. The ANC, or at least many of its leaders, have too much baggage of inherent villainism that they carry with them (exactly because the organization has become too powerful without proper ‘checks and balances’), which keeps them more occupied with things like disbanding the Scorpions and gallivanting the world over, than governing according to the peoples’ needs and constitutional requirements. A much stronger opposition, not necessarily white or dominated by a specific culture (God forbid – lest we want to see a return to apartheid), is therefore required. Dare we pray for a split in the ANC? A worrying aspect of the xeno-hatred violence, is that recent incidents not only evidenced attacks on (African) foreigners, but also on Shangaan- and Vhenda-speaking people living in Cosmopolitan areas. This kind of violence has the makings to erupt into full-scale ethnic-cleansing activities, such as those we saw in Yugoslavia and Rwanda; and it is definitely not something we can afford. So, hopefully, no charismatic leader will arise from the eternal sea of politics, that could whip up the sentiments of the dispossesed against the enemy of choice. And I agree with Wessel, organizations such as Cosatu, SACP, TAC, AfriForum, Solidariteit, have to be bolstered as soon as possible to avoid exactly this kind of situation and to stabilize the country. One last thing, the fact that the NIA apparently had a good idea of what was brewing and failed to step in, reminds one of the FBI and CIA knowing about the eminent attacks on the US on 9/11, and is an extremely worrying aspect of the ANC government’s capacity to protect the people of SA.
A-mouse: loved your comment. By the way, it’s ‘tripartite’ not ‘tri-partheid’ (tripartite = consisting of three parts, no relation to apartheid).
Pierre: I’m not sure about the locals’ “low work ethic”, but I do know that illegal immigrants are at an advantage over our own people in that they are not bound by our rigid labour laws, i.e. minimum wages, as well as hiring-but-no-firing. In fact, I firmly believe that if it weren’t for those inflexible laws, even unskilled people would find jobs, because there are plenty of such jobs out there. These labour laws only protect those who have work, and to hell with the unemployed. Although Cosatu may be admirable chaps in many ways, this counts against them.
Is it me or is the SABC flighting a lot of positive stuff on TM. Is Dali back at work yet?
Did you guys read the Sunday Crimes? Very interesting research was published. I wrote about it on me blog. Apparently were the most xenephobic country in the world.
Pierre,
Quite a brave post. Unlike Wessel, I do not find it insulting, but thought provoking. I find it brave because all responses or analyses to the xenophobic attacks, from mine to Prof Darcy du Toit’s to Desmand Tutu’s, while condemning the attacks, saw these as signifying frustration by poor South Africans over unmet promises of delivery of social goods by the ANC. So we hold the government (ANC) responsible for the outbreak of these attacks, even if partly. In this case the immigrants were the “enemy of choice”, as you put it.
Your question is who will be the next enemy of choice: Homosexuals? Xhosas? Vendas? Whites? Woman? In the circumstances, a pertinent question indeed. A related question was asked by Z in the previous posts in the context of Black-White relations in SA: “what happens when Mandela dies”? Let me deal with Pierre’s question first. First, I think black South Africans on the whole are poor but proud, kind and very patient people. They would not ordinarily inflict harm on another human. The underlying causes behind the xenophobic attacks have been explained on this blog and elsewhere (media). Regarding homosexual and women being used as scapegoats for poverty and unemployment, I do not see this happening. That is, unless a charismatic leader could painstakingly convince the masses that homosexual and women are responsible for their state of want. Instead I foresee isolated attacks on homosexuals based on ignorance as has been reported in the media.
Regarding tribal attacks, I do not see this happening on a grand scale. This will of course depend on whether a tribe feels it has representation in the ANC and in government. It will be recalled that the 100% Zulu Boy T-shirts were motivated by feelings that ANC leadership is dominated by the Xhosas. So the appointment of Zuma as ANC president went a long way towards eliminating any possibility of tribal attacks, say between Xhosas and Zulu. That is, unless of course a charismatic leader points out to the masses that the Xhosas were responsible for destitution of the Zulus or the other round.
Regarding Blacks turning against Whites because of their poverty and unemployment, that’s difficult one to call. The masses seem to know that the government (ANC) is primarily responsible for providing them with goods and not White people. That is why they vote the ANC into power repeatedly. They are also aware that some White people are not co-operative when it comes to land reform as they charge inflated prices (called market prices) for their land. And that others (Whites) do not fully embrace affirmative action and mock it by window dressing, nor do they fully embrace black empowerment as they mock it by fronting. All these policies are necessary to achieve social justice by sharing the pie (wealth distribution). The government seems to have kept these frustrations to itself and has not gone out, as Pierre points out, to vilify White people for not being co-operative and for making mockery of these policies. Social justice (wealth distribution) is a precondition and therefore a guarantee for long lasting peace. In one of his songs Bob Marley says that the oppressor wanted peace without justice. And no size of army nor police personnel can guarantee that peace. We have that peace in South Africa without social justice and it works because the people’s government (ANC) is in power.
So Pierre is right, we must be grateful we have the ANC in power and not the DA, for the next few years at least. With the levels of poverty and inequality (social injustice) that we have in this country, it would be difficult to guarantee peace under a DA government. What we have to remember is that a group (blacks in this case) is understanding and patient with failures of the members of its own group. We may not see the same patience under, say, a DA government. So we have to hope that the ANC stays in power until it delivers the promised social goods and bring about social justice, so that the masses will have less and less reasons to blame anybody.
Wessel,
Here is a balanced view on this topic- and a good piece of journalism, I must add.
http://www.mg.co.za/articlePage.aspx?articleid=339923&area=/insight/insight__africa/
Siya, indeed a good piece of journalism.
But what we should not forget as that its true for the whole world. The French hate the English, the English the Germans, the Germans the French. Not acutely now, but for centuries they were at each others throats. It’s only in the last 50 years that they have experienced some form of peace.
As to your comments about some whites not being willing to or cooperative. What do you expect? That’s not the point is it. It’s government that should make sure land distribution happens. And that it happens in such a way, that food production does not suffer.
Ordinary citizens are not a cross between moral philosophers or Saint Theresa’s and you cant expect them out of the goodness of their hearts to do what the government should, especially if it goes against their own interests.
Today’s Sunday Times research points to an very interesting phenomena. That of a South African Nationalism. This could actually be a silver lining around a very dark cloud. It could just be to antidote to corruption (and tribalism) we need.
South Africa is in dire need of an attitude amongst its citizens that echoes that of JFK. Ask not what your country can do for you but what you could do for your country. This is an attitude that makes of corruption the original sin.
As for whether this violence can spread to include whites, I think that *at this stage* the research points against why that is likely to happen. If it were to happen, it is most likely to come via instigation by the black elite, who is most likely to use it to protect their status and positions.
As for the specifics of the piece you mentioned.
It starts of with the oft mentioned mantra of how Africa was carved up during the conference in Berlin barely a hundred years ago. The problem of course is that in our case that does not apply. Colonialism in his country predates the Berlin conference by nearly two years.
And violence between black groups predate that as well. The Mfecane happened well before this.
One of the other things that people forget is that Nations are often forged through violence. To expect Africa not to do that is supremely naive. To expect all of Africa to belong to all of Africa is really the stuff of Canadian NGO workers dreams.
> nearly two years.
should have read nearly two hundred and fifty years.
Zuma was in the townships yesterday and what transpired supports the research and my view I think
“While the leader was loudly welcomed by the crowd — packed into a small community centre — he received an unusually tough response as members demanded the government deal with the influx of foreigners.
A young man shouting from the back of the hall urged Zuma to ensure government kept out foreigners from neighbouring countries.
http://www.africasia.com/services/news/newsitem.php?area=africa&item=080525182105.5wzwl2f7.php
“You talk to (Zimbabwe President Robert) Mugabe, you talk to (Mozambique President Armando) Guebuza. Tell them to tell their people they must not harass us in our country. This is our country.”
He said foreigners in the country were “riding on the gravy train”.
“We are looking to make you our president (in 2009 elections) so beware. If you are a stumbling block, we are going to kick you away,” the man warned, as the crowd erupted with deafening support for the sentiments.”
Clara, thanks, but the use of the word ‘tripartheid’ (instead of ‘tripartite’) was intentional (in jest of course) as that is the way a local ANC Councillor (and friend) spells it when he publishes articles in a local paper (which you people down South will never read). The rest of the above posts are all indeed thought provoking, and this is something that should be thoroughly debated. And I’m not saying te ANC should be ousted, only that there should be stronger control to keep them on their toes.
I hear people talking about the split in the ANC. I also think such a split, peacefully executed, would be good as it would off load the burden of struggle credentials from who ever will be in gorvenment. But somehow the thought just feels wrong. Its like wishing for a speedy death of a parent in a comma.
Khosi, it would only amount to a ‘death-wish’ if one wishes that the party ‘dies’ or loses control alltogether. That is not what I am wishing for. Just for stronger control of the party (and the government, which is de facto only the ruling party in another guise) in the common good of the people. And, as far as I am concerned, I do not see the DA, as it is currently structured, in such a position. On the other hand, a stronger opposition should be based on non-racist, non-sexist, and all the other constitutional values based on equality and equity, which the ANC, as it is currently structured, is not.
Couple of points:
1. Sensationalism:
I agree with Khosi that it is sensationalist to say the government is not functioning. You can talk of levels of efficiency, but there is no need to overstate. You can say home affairs is in a dire situation, with corruption rife and lots of backlogs, but you are still able to get a passport, no?
2. The balanced article from the mail and guardian:
Though he makes many good points in the article, he does oversimplify the causitive factors. He starts with: “Africans on the continent have never liked one another”
Note the “never”. But then the only causitive factor mentioned is the scramble for Africa, kind of contradicting his “never”. Though few could argue against the fact that it has been a major contributing factor, it is rather simplistic. All over the world similar sentiments are found to differing degrees and it wasn’t all caused by colonialism. Some rhetoric in this regard seems to imply that Africa was one big happy family before the colonials came (in terms of inter tribal relations). My statement might seem overstated, but it is the impression created by some. There were many conflicts in Africa, just as the rest of the world.
“internalised the differences the Europeans foisted on them”
What does that mean? How do you go about proving or disproving such a statement? It is one of those which have the ring of truth, but you can’t pin it down to really see if it is indeed so.
“a free Africa remains acutely conscious of the boundaries that the colonial powers drew. Across the continent and, long after independence, these differences are replicated.”
This is also an oversimplification. It implies that differences would be nationalist in origin or tribalist as per tribal “preferences” by the colonials (advancing one tribe ahead of another).
I have a current example to disprove this assertion: Though our boundaries are such that Shangaans, are in SA and Mozambique, it did not hinder Xenophobes from telling all Shangaans to go. It wasn’t the colonial boundary motivating it, but indeed the tribal/cultural sentiments. It was also not an example of a certain tribe who was more privileged by colonial powers as with the Hutu/Tutsi situation in Rwanda.
I did find it a refreshingly different read, but wouldn’t give it any awards for scholarship.
2. Cosatu, SACP:
In contrast to Wessel, Cosatu and the SACP are worrying me. They are speaking up on many of the “right” issues, but they do not let an opportunity go by to blame it on the government’s policies.
They rally against Xenophobia, but focus on blaming government policies (compare with mine worker’s union, focusing on protection of foreigners). This can easily be construed as electioneering. It seemed like they were more focused on winning the people over to “their” side than really addressing the crisis.
I don’t know what the current status of Cosatu’s request for NEC representation is, but in a mail and guardian article Gwede Mantashe was warning Cosatu that they will not get the requested representation and saying they will stick to current inflation targeting, budget surpluses, etc.
Don’t discount the possibility of them going at it on their own in the next elections. They have been flexing their muscles a lot the last few months and if they don’t feel they have enough power to change economic policies, they might just go on their own. Whatever your view on capitalism/socialism, there are many an example of failed socialist states in Africa.
3. Mbeki step down:
One thing is for sure, if Mbeki were to step down now and even call elections as some request, we would be an a more dire situation. We don’t need him to step down, but to step up. But if neither happens, step down is the worst option in this crisis, as I see things now.
4. Land distribution:
Siya, just a note regarding the land distribution. I have a friend working as an agricultural consultant and he is currently working with one of the few successful empowerment projects (outperforming commercial farmers). There is a lot more to this than unwilling farmers and expensive farms. There are numerous farms being advertised at good prices but not bought. A recent study indicated government administration failure as more likely cause for the lack of progress in distribution. It indicated that since 2004, farm prices have gone up by just over 1% per year. Compare that to other property prices!
5. “When Mandela dies”:
I still have no clue about that one. Any ideas where this comes from and how widely spread it is?
ps. Got spare cash. Drop some nappies, baby food, bottles etc at your nearest refugee center (or phone), ask the police where but rather drop it off at the center itself.
We have a relief center two km’s from where we stay. One of the guys there, a Burundian was saying that some policemen also told them to go back to their country. After all the police officers also come from communities, so they will also be reflective of societal views.
Just sad when there is no trust relationship with our police service.
Cape Town at last has a page on their website for relief work:
http://www.capetown.gov.za/en/Pages/HOWTOASSISTTHEVICTIMSOFXENOPHOBICVIOLENCEINCAPETOWN.aspx
Z, ‘5. “When Mandela dies”:’ – I am not sure where you read (heard) about this, but it reportedly forms an integral part of an ancient ‘prophesy’ by one Siener van Rensburg that has been circulated among Afrikaners in an e-mail emanating from a Rightist group that calls themselves “Die Suidlanders”. It concerns a conspiracy theory that, because Mandela has forgiven and vowed white Afrikaners his protection as long as he lives, that promise will come to an end the day that he dies. According to the theory, which is really laughable, a ‘Night of the long knives’ (’Nag van die Lang Messe’) will follow Madiba’s death, where black people would unite in a Mau-Mau style armed with pangas or machetes, with which all whites will then be slaughtered. The e-mail seeks to forewarn white Afrikaners of this plot, which has reportedly been concluded in Moskow at some unknown time, so that they can arm themsleves with arms and basic foodstuffs etc so that they can withstand the onslaught. The ‘Suidlnaders’ is part of a group that call themselves the ‘Israel Vision’, in terms of which the members believe that they (the white Afrikaner) is one of the twelve tribes of Israel and that they can therefore reckon on the protection of God, also to make them strong in war to overcome the ‘enemy’ (’blacks’). The so-called ‘Boeremag’ also contains traces of this far-fetched beliefs held by these organizations. My view, however, is that only really ‘dumb’ and ‘backward’ Afrikaners are being misled by this trash, which probably caught flame again in the light of the recent xeno-hatred attacks, and should not really be given any more thought. I think that rumours of this kind have also been thrown aroud under the non-white foreigners that have fallen ictim of the latest spate of attacks.
Anonymouse
I am familiar with the rumour and Siener etc. I posted stuff in this regard on “Xenophobia excused or explained?” which I quote below.
I am especially interested in what our black brothers can contribute in this regard, since here is two incidents of black people bring it up. One with killing whites, the other with Xenophobia. Were it not for these, I would hardly have given a moment’s notice to the right wing conspiracy theorists.
Xenophobia excused or explained?:
Comment: z // May 18, 2008 at 8:56 pm
“5. There is a further issue I would like to bring up in this context, since I don’t know where to bring this up, and it is related.
http://www.thoughtleader.co.za/mandelarhodesscholars/2008/05/15/on-makwerekwere/
This article is also about this issue. But one point I found very strange and have gotten no response from the author. I was hoping to get some perspective especially from my African brothers/sisters on this blog.
“South Africans need to understand that black African foreigners are not to be feared, treated as sub–human or purged. Failing that, I feel on the passing of Tatu Mandela we may experience a purge transient, which would have the world disgusted and may permanently scar us.”
What is the significance of Mandela’s passing? What is the logic behind it? (I only have some guesses) And how prevalent is it? Why would Mandela’s passing make the plight of foreigners worse? Where does it come from?
In 1997 there was this infamous incident:
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=13&art_id=arch63833be7ee312f02f
“Cape Town An ANC councillor, caught driving down the wrong way on the N1, allegedly threatened arresting officers with the remark: “When Mandela dies we will kill you whites like flies.”
Mzukisi Gaba, an executive committee member with the Cape metropolitan council, was arrested at 2.50am yesterday near the Koeberg interchange. ”
Of course some in the Afrikaner community have been frenzied about this, with lots of rumours.
I just found it very surprising that the author of that article brought it up in this context.
Of course if that does happen then the world will suddenly sit up and take notice and call for all kinds of things to happen. The world seems desensitized to so called black-on-black violence.”
Z, thanks for the response. I have not read the particular post on Thoughtleader and therefore did not know where your problem arose from. Now it is clear and I get your point. It cannot really be determined exactly what the author meant with a ‘purge transient’ that might follow the passing of Madiba (unless of course, according to the intro to the particular paragraph, the xenophobia between and against fellow black Africans is timeously eradicated). However, it would appear that he meant that a short period of ‘ethnic cleansing’ (in the context of the article, ‘black-on-black ethnic violence’ to get rid of the ‘foreigners’) might follow Mandela’s death, unless work is now made of the hatred, fears and distrust between fellow black Africans. Why author feelt like that at the time the article was written (or might still feel so), is open to speculation, but it would appear that, like the Suidlanders’ urban leged would have it, Mandela is regarded as an icon (and rightly so) amongst all black (and many white) Africans; that he has always been (and still is) a very charismatic and well respected leader, with particular skills in calming people during times of hatred and shock (e.g., see his leadership following the Chris Hani assasination when FW de Klerk, then still President, failed to evidence same). A person that could in difficult times join different people together in unity – a ‘rainbow nation’ (to borrow from his Eminence Desmond Tutu). As a sign of respect towards him, therefore, one would not expect wholsesale ethnic cleansing to take place during his lifetime, but when he passes, so the author of the article opines, ethnic violence might (albeit short-lived) erupt and disgrace SA in the eyes of the internaional community. I agree that this is a very worrying feature of the article, and one would expect the author to clarify what was meant when confronted with a query like yours. Otherwise everyone will only be able to speculate on what was meant, where the idea originated from, etc. In any event, like Thabo Mbeki said on TV last night, SA has already been shamed by the recent spate of events, and they can already be regarded as incidents of ethnic cleansing (’purge transient’ – if you wish) that is taking place – during the life of Madiba already – andtherefore the opinion to an extent becomes irrelevant in the current time. It would however be interesting to hear what other ‘black’ Africans have to say on this.
Wessel,
Your the first article was AWERSOME!
Siya
In relation to you question of “who will be the next enemy of choice”, you forgot to include Indians.
With regard to everyone who commented on the above blog- you all make relevant statements and are to a lesser or greater degree correct. Let me just add my sentiments.
Xenophobia- I don’t really understand this. People say that theu foreigners are a threat as they take jobs. Maybe this is true but I’ve had a lot to do with foreign Africans and many of them are actually highly skilled, trained and qualified individuals, comprising of doctors, lawyers, teachers, engineers… (the list goes on) in their own countries, yet they are reduced to busting tables, being carguards or gardenboys. You must think how bad life is in their respective countries if they are contend to be a lowly carguard in SA when they are a doctor in say the DRC. Have some empathy for them as well. In their country their qualification means next to nothing when everyone (or the vast majority of the populace) are starving. I’m not condoning them taking our peoples jobs but if our own people don’t use the oppotunities available then it is only obvious that others will… Our people seem to forget that these same people who they now victimise protected their farthers, mothers , grandparents etc when they need to escape the Apartheid goverment. These people harboured our fugitives (maybe unwillingly and grudgingly in some cases but nonethe less they did) and this is how we repay them??!!! Talk about a knife in the back and a kick in the stomach when they’re down!!!
ANC: Unfortunately I have no great love of the ANC and I don’t think they are doing enough to keep this country on its feet. To be fair they got the country when it was in a political mess after apartheid and so on, but they have done very little (for the most part) to better it or keep their promises. Most of our people starve while our goverment and cabinet ministers stuff their pockets with cash, jet all over the world on tax-payers money (money which should go toward bettering our country for everyone) and turn a blind eye to blatant corruption! Doesn’t it just reek of Zimbabwe to any of you???? I don’t know who would be better at governing this country, but if something isn’t done soon, our country will only fall into the same pit that has claimed the rest of Africa!!! SA has so much potential, we just don’t have anyone capable of exploiting that potential in a positive way…
Madiba and the night of the long knives: Many of you can laugh at such a notion, but ethnic cleansing has happened many times before in many different cultures (Hitler, Amin, Mau Se Tung, Yugoslavia, Chaka, Rwanda…the list is endless). However, no matter what any of you say, those that say a night of the long knives is coming are probably right, although it may not just be aimed at only whites. As we have seen with xenophobia, our people seem unkindly disposed towards all who are different. It will be about a balance of power- whoever is not in power will have to fear for their lives.
However it has to be said that all the leaders in this country have (at least publically) great respect for Mandela and who wouldn’t have… Therefore they will not attempt anything of this calibre while there is still air left in his lungs and a beating heart in his chest. After his death it will be a different story. I’m not saying it will be instantaneous either, but it will be subtle at first before people start realising what has been happening. The ANC counsillor’s comment is not the first that I have heard or heard of and I think that the threat is very real to everyone who is not part of the balance of power (which includes whites, indians, coloureds and any black tribes not in power). For those who doubt truth in Siener’s visions, just go look back in SA’s history and read parts of the book containing Sieners visions and you will see that many of the things happened just as he said (Koos De La Rey’ s assasination just as an example). Just as with Nostradamus before him, Siener saw the future. I just hope that people will not ingnore his warnings like they did Nostradamus.
Zuma: I’m sorry to all the Zuma supporters out there, but I neither like nor trust Zuma and don’t think he will make a particularlly good addition to SA in her current state, but that’s just me. Zuma is notoriously pro-Zulu culture (as he should be) and just as notoriously anti-white and (and I don’t care what anyone says) Xhosa (which is also only natural as the xhosa and zulu tribes have been bitter enemies since time in memorium). Therefore I don’t think it a particularly good thing to be either under his governance.
However, to be fair (since he is not actually president yet), he may well be a good Lord Protector of SA and her children, but then he may be worse than Mugabe, Amin, Hitler, Mousalini, Stalin and the rest combined. Only time will tell. (I realise it might be an overexaggeration, but I am a realist (albeit a fair one) and I refuse to labour under the cosy comfertable delusion that blanket’s our country- I don’t care who says what but things are NOT hunky-dory as some would have us believe).
I’m not a prophet of doom. I’m not saying these things because I want to stir up trouble, but there is a storm brewing and it does not bode well. I am a young, WHITE South African and I don’t care what the African nationalists say, but the colour of your skin has absolutely NOTHING to do with being an AFRICAN!!!! I’m as much an African as Thabo, Zuma, Mandela or any of you!!! My ancestory has nothing to do with it!!! I was born on THIS continent, not in Europe!!! That makes me an African and I am proud to be called so. I am proud to live in such a beautiful country and to be able to call it the place of my birth. I am proud of my country’s history on all fronts and throughout the ages because every last one fought a good battle, and if the blacks aren’t too busy feeling hard done by, they may remember that the BoereVolk went through much worse under British occupation. Yes Apartheid was bad, sad and inhumane, but we need to put it behinf us if we are ever truely to be free of it. There is an old Chinese proverb that states ‘Don’t look to the future for it hasn’t happened yet, don’t look to the past because it may destroy you, but look to today, for each is a gift- that’s why we call it the present’. I’m not saying we mustn’t try and learn from the past (ours’ and the worlds’) but we must stop focusing all our efforts on it and blaming everything that goes wrong in our lives and our country because of it. We must take what we need from the past to shape what happens today to ensure a better future for everyone in this country!!!