By: Po Eic Quah
South Africa prides itself on its history of overcoming adversity. Having endured the brutality of imperialism and Apartheid, South Africa sees it survival as a testament to the resilience and strength of her multicultural population. South Africa portrays herself as a beacon of multiracial democracy; an abode of peace in an Africa marked by protracted civil wars and tyrannical dictatorships. Though post-Apartheid South Africa promises its people a nation free from the racism of the past, the people of South Africa have seemed to turn its racism against someone different this time - African immigrants.
It seems almost ironic that despite being disenfranchised under a white-minority government during the colonial and Apartheid era, many black South Africans have incited and called for aggression against immigrants from other African countries. Claiming that their jobs have been taken by immigrants from Zambia and Tanzania, many of the unemployed have taken to the streets of Johannesburg to loot and destroy migrant-owned businesses in a frenzy of violence. Politicians from the African National Congress, eager to retain their constituencies in the face of economic woes and increasing voter disillusionment, have conveniently weaponised xenophobic sentiments to divert attention from the inner failings of the ANC. They have tried to frame the influx of migrants as the sole cause of dire unemployment and economic stagnation, even blaming loose border control policies in their own party for these unfavourable conditions. Fortunately for them and unfortunately for migrants, many South Africans are convinced by this rhetoric.
The rise of this isolationist brand of nationalism might be perceived to be an anomaly, but considering recent trends in global politics, it might not be too unusual after all. The recent violence targeting migrants is nothing more than a manifestation of anti-immigrant sentiments sweeping across the globe, from Hungary to Brazil. Governments, facing much pressure from the populace, find it easier to scapegoat migrants than to deal with their own failures. South Africa is unique because despite being a nation built on the active disavowment of racism, her people’s animosity and resistance against migrants is the largest on the continent.
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