The Consumer Rights Advancement
Organisation (CRADO) has given the South African government 40 days ultimatum
show concrete efforts at stopping lootings and vandalisation of business
interests of non-South African blacks, ITRealms
reports.
CRADO president, Chief Adeolu Ogunbanjo told correspondent in
a press statement that in the last ten years, Xenophobic / Afrophobic
attacks, killings, burnings, lootings and vandalisation of business interests
of Non-South African Blacks have become a growing concern and common knowledge
to some African countries like Somalia, Mozambique, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia,
Nigeria, Kenya, Zambia and others.
In the month of May, 2008, he said, a
series of attacks took place all over South Africa, with gangs of local black
South Africans descended on informal settlements and shanty towns armed with
clubs, machetes and touches, and attacked immigrants from Mozambique, Malawi
and Zimbabwe.
The locals reportedly accused these
immigrants of taking jobs away from them, among other grievances. Over the
course of those two weeks, over 60 Non-South African Blacks were killed,
several hundreds injured, and many thousands of immigrants were displaced, or
returned to their home countries.
Dealing with the aftermath of the
attacks became a large problem for South Africa – prosecuting attackers,
accommodating refugees, dealing with a labor shortage, political damage
control, sought to address root causes, and some soul-searching all took place.
On May 30, 2013, 25-year-old Abdi
Nasir Mahmoud Good, was stoned to death. The violence was captured on a mobile
phone and shared on the Internet.
The following month, June, 2013,
three Somali shopkeepers were killed and the Somali government requested
the South African authorities to do more to protect their nationals. The
attacks led to public outcry and worldwide protests by the Somali Diaspora, in Cape Town, London and Minneapolis.
On June 7, 2014, a Non-South African
Black, in his 50s, was reportedly stoned to death and two others were seriously
injured when the angry mob of locals attacked their shop in extension 6 late on
Saturday. Three more Non-South African Blacks were wounded from gunshots and
shops were looted.
In January 2015, CRADO president
pointed out that looters burned businesses owned by Non-South African Blacks in
a wave of xenophobic attacks. In addition, there were
other incidents of violence
last year, according to Human Rights Watch.
Again this year, in April 2015,
there was an upsurge in xenophobic / afrophobic attacks throughout South
Africa. The attacks started in Durban after Zulu
King, Goodwill Zwelithini said
at a gathering that foreigners "should pack their bags and go"
because they are taking jobs from citizens, local media reported.
Shortly after his comments, violence
against Non-South African Blacks erupted in the port city of Durban. The king’s
office has denied he made the comments,
saying journalists misquoted him.
Locals looted foreigners' shops and
attacked Non-South African Blacks in general, forcing hundreds to relocate to
police stations across the country. Some African Governments subsequently began
repatriating their nationals, and others also announced that they would
evacuate their citizens.
A Mozambican street vendor Emmanuel
Sithole was murdered in Alexandra
township as well as the official list of seven
victims who were all killed in KwaZulu Natal in the April 2015 attacks.
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