Xenophobic violence continues unabated in Durban

Foreigners, locals clash in Joburg

Johannesburg - A group of people clashed with foreign nationals, throwing bricks at them, Johannesburg CBD on Wednesday.

One Somali national was beaten up in the skirmishes that lasted several minutes.

“Come here…we will show you how to get beaten up..” one of the locals shouted at foreign nationals in SeSotho.

A bakkie parked along the street was damaged.

The Somalian eventually managed to flee as Metro police arrived on the scene.

Stores along several busy Johannesburg streets including Jeppe, Bree and Sauer were closed.

Bangladeshi shop owner, Sheikh Syed said he received calls from fellow shop owners that people were planning to loot their stores.

“We decided to close and watch what might unfold. Nothing has happened so far, we’re being careful because people were killed in Soweto, and now it’s happening in Durban,” he said as he stood outside his grocery store on Bree Street earlier on Wednesday.

He said he arrived in South Africa five years ago to seek a better life. There were not enough jobs for everyone in Bangladesh, he said.

“We came in peace. I am sure South Africans would be treated well in my country. We are here to make a living, and not to take away people’s jobs.”

Syed said most foreigners stayed in South Africa for years and didn’t travel home because they did not have permits to live in the country, and as a result fear being arrested by authorities upon trying to re-enter.

“Government needs to tighten the laws. If there’s complaints that we don’t pay tax, then fix the system and make it easy for us to trade and provide jobs,” Syed said.

Metro police officers were visible as they patrolled the streets just before lunchtime on Wednesday.

Security guard Siphiwe Mhlanga of Red Alert security company was stationed along Sauer Street and said shopkeepers had closed shops at around 10am.

“I don’t know about other parts of the city, but there were no attempts to loot shops around here. There’s police patrolling in cars as you can see.”

Xenophobic attacks broke out in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, over a week ago. At least 74 people have been arrested after police launched a clampdown on attacks on foreign nationals and their businesses.

- ANA

Foreigners in Joburg CBD closing shops

Johannesburg - Foreign nationals are closing down their shops in the Johannesburg CBD in fear of possible attacks on Wednesday.

Johannesburg metro police spokesman chief Superintendent Wayne Minnaar said police were monitoring the situation.

“What we have observed is that foreign nationals are closing down their stores. We have not received any reports of violence or attacks so far,” he said.

Attacks on foreign nationals and the looting of their shops started in Isipingo outside of Durban a week ago and spread to KwaMashu, Umlazi and Chatsworth.

A number of criminal cases have been opened at various police stations in the Umlazi and Chatsworth areas.The cases included public violence, business robberies, murder, attempted murder, assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm and malicious damage to property. A total of 48 people had been arrested by Tuesday.

On There was a stand-off between large groups of foreign nationals and locals in central Durban which resembled a war zone on Tuesday. Despite being attacked, having their shops looted and being left stranded, foreign nationals have remained adamant that they would not be forced out of the city of Durban.

- ANA

Violence has Durban on the edge

Durban - The Durban CBD came to a standstill on Tuesday after xenophobic violence spread into the city’s streets.

After news of attacks on foreigners and the looting of foreign-owned shops in one part of the city spread to the Point area, angry residents vowed to fight, refusing to be at the mercy of “useless thugs”.

Nigerians in the Point area vowed that they would protect themselves:

“We have nowhere else to go. We can’t go back; the sea is behind us, so we have to fight back,” said one.

They built barriers out of burning tyres and scattered debris to protect themselves.

Large retail shops like Edgars and Ackermans in Dr Pixley KaSeme (West) Street and fast food restaurants in Mahatma Gandhi (Point) Road closed their doors as the violence threatened to spiral further out of control.

Many of the shop owners and vendors tried to rescue their goods.

The drama, which until on Tuesday had been restricted to eThekwini townships and informal settlements, spread to parts of the city, seen as a stronghold for foreigners.

Pandemonium erupted when news spread that foreign-owned shops were being looted in Joseph Nduli (Russell) Street and that the attackers were advancing through the city.

From Joseph Nduli Street, they proceeded to wreak havoc at The Workshop’s flea market, where many foreigners had stalls.

Police were quick to respond to the looting and dispersed the crowd. The stall owners were forced to close shop.

A manager in one of the buildings in Dr Goonam (Prince Edward) Street, Jerry Samuel, said he witnessed looting of shops there and in Dr Yusuf Dadoo (Grey) and Ingcunce (Albert) streets.

“When the owners pulled the doors down, the looters started grabbing stuff displayed outside. We could only save what was inside,” he said.

Many South African-owned shops were also looted while others quickly shut down.

“Some of the foreigners left their stuff and ran away because they were scared. We could not protect them because the groups were aggressive,” he said.

The Mercury saw locals attacking foreigners who were walking in the streets. Police arrested two men at the forefront of the group.

The 320 West Street building was also not spared.

After hearing of the attacks in the city centre, foreigners in the Point area created a defensive barrier, burning tyres and scattering debris across Mahatma Gandhi Road, bringing the area to a standstill. A large group was armed with bush knives, hammers and cricket bats. Police used stun grenades and water cannon to disperse the crowd.

The SAPS and metro police struggled to maintain order.

An angry group of Nigerians, who spoke to The Mercury at the scene, issued a spine-chilling warning to their “rivals” that they had nowhere else to go and would defend themselves.

Shako Kuminga, who represents the Congolese in Durban, said people received frantic calls from their employees and families telling them of the violence in town.

“Our girlfriends and wives work near The Workshop and 320 (Dr Pixley KaSeme Street). My girlfriend called me saying, ‘Come fetch me, they are hitting us,’” he said. “When we heard that we rallied to protect ourselves.

“I don’t even know where she is right now,” he said.

“They didn’t get here… here it’s the Nigerians, Zimbabweans, Ethopians and Congolese.

“We want to stop them; we want to defend ourselves. We have nowhere else to go. We can’t go back; there is the sea behind us, so we have to fight back. We are waiting for them. Our brothers have already been killed. We have nothing else to lose.”

They were livid about the treatment meted out by locals, saying: “You will never hear of such a thing in Nigeria. Locals will beat you for calling someone a foreigner. We are brothers in our eyes.”

The group said: “It’s easy; government can just open the border gates and let us go if they don’t want us. But they must know that no plane must leave South Africa to come to our countries.”

There were reports of xenophobic attacks and looting in Waterloo and central Verulam on Tuesday. It was not clear whether there were any injuries in the incidents.

Police spokesman Jay Naicker said that in the Verulam CBD, two shops belonging to foreigners were looted by a group of people at about 7pm, during load shedding.

“No one was injured and a 31-year-old suspect was arrested. He will appear in the Verulam Magistrate’s Court soon.”

Situation ‘diabolical and nefarious’

The city said on Tuesday night that it would not allow eThekwini to be turned into a war zone.

“Government has noted with grave concerns and regret that the attacks on foreign nationals and looting of their shops have continued around the province.”

The statement said that it was completely unacceptable for South Africans to treat foreign nationals in such a “diabolical and nefarious manner”.

Mayor James Nxumalo called upon all members of society “to join us in rejecting and condemning xenophobia and all related discrimination”.

Earlier on Tuesday deputy mayor Nomvuso Shabalala spoke at the Khula Business Tour at the Dube TradePort.

“Before we have always said that xenophobia was in the townships. Today we have seem something we have never seen before.

“It has come to the inner city. We don’t believe this thing that people are saying that foreigners have taken their businesses. We believe that there is an element of criminality and jealousy behind this. Durban has received a number of accolades, such as the best place to live, and we are worried that this is tarnishing the image of our city of Durban. The violence must stop – it is not acceptable and it is not humane.”

MEC for Economic Development Mike Mabuyakhulu said the premier had called a meeting at city hall at 2.30pm on Wednesday, when all business stakeholders would meet to discuss solutions to the xenophobic violence.

“He wants to assure the public that the provincial government is providing leadership, this is not the time to panic.”

Police Ministry spokesman Musa Zondi debunked rumours that the army was to be deployed, saying the military was not trained to handle such situations.

KZN EMS spokesman Robert McKenzie said at least six people, all foreigners, were attended to during the attacks on Tuesday. He said three were stabbed and one was burnt. The other two were transported by private ambulances.

Police said 12 people were arrested in Durban on Tuesday for public violence.

- The Mercury

Afrophobia behind KZN attacks: minister

Parliament, Cape Town - The spate of attacks on foreign nationals in KwaZulu-Natal was a symptom of a larger problem of Afrophobia in South African communities, police minister Nathi Nhleko said on Tuesday.

Addresssing journalists in Parliament, along with his colleagues from the Justice, Crime Prevention and Security (JCPS) cluster, Nhleko said those perpetrating the attacks were mostly targeting fellow Africans.

“What you don’t see is you don’t see Australians being chased on the streets, Britons being chased on the streets and similar demands being placed on them that they should be leave the country and so on,” said Nhleko.

“What you effectively see is largely Africans against one another in a sense now. It represents a certain type of political problem that has got to be dealt with by ourselves as South Africans on the one hand.”

The minister said the problem was ideological in nature.

“In a sense, what we are witnessing are actually Afrophobic kind of activities and attacks…and resembling all elements of self-hate for an example among Africans and so forth,” he said.

“The evidence seems to show that mainly the attacks are against the Congolese, the Zimbabweans, the Malawians, the Mozambicans, Ethiopians, the Somalis and South African nationals as well.”

Nhleko cited the 2008 xenophobic attacks which were widespread across the country. Of the 62 people killed, 21 were South Africans. Nhleko said the South Africans were attacked because of their darker skin.

The minister ruled out calling in the army at this stage to help quell the violence.

“The situation necessarily has not come to that point to necessitate army deployment. Government agencies have handled that situation relatively quite well,” said Nhleko.

Nhleko said government together with NGOs were assisting foreign nationals by setting up centres to accommodate them.

Currently, 276 displaced foreigners were being accommodated in Isipingo, 196 in Greenwood Park and the number of foreigners seeking help in Chatsworth fluctuated between 800 and one thousand.

Nhleko and his fellow ministers from the JCPS cluster said government was taking a no-nonsense approach in dealing with perpertrators of anti-foreigner violence.

“We want to assert government’s position that any lawlessness will not be tolerated,” said Defence Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula.

“Government will not hesitate to enforce the laws of the country and we will continue to act speedily and decisively on any criminal activity in South Africa under any guise.”

Mapisa-Nqakula said at least 48 people had been arrested since the weekend in connection with attacks on foreign nationals.

Additional law enforcement officers were mobilised from around the country and deployed to affected areas to prevent further attacks.

- ANA

Xenophobic clashes rock Durban

Durban - Areas of Durban resembled a war zone late on Tuesday afternoon as violence between locals and foreign nationals boiled over.

Shops in central Durban were closed as a knobkierrie-wielding mob assaulted foreign nationals and looted their shops in Durban.

Metro police rushed around to make sure shops were properly closed as some foreigners fled without closing them properly.

Taxis had their windows smashed as foreign nationals threw rocks and stones from a block of flats on West Street, in central Durban.

Police had their hands full trying to calm down an angry mob of locals who had stones and rocks thrown at them.

There was glass all over the street and police resorted to using teargas in a bid to separate the warring groups.

“We are under attack, people are coming from everywhere. Police are not helping us, maybe they are tired of us,” said foreign shop owner, Richard Condonso.

He said the locals had pushed them into a corner.

“We will retaliate, in full force just to defend ourselves,” said Condonso.

A local, who refused to be named, said the foreign nationals deserved what was happening to them.

“We are tired of them. They are criminals. They do house break-ins. Ever since they came into the country, the crime rate has escalated”.

Police spokesperson, Jay Naicker could not be reached for comment.

- ANA

Deadly attacks in #XenophobicSA spur national disgust

The deadly xenophobic attacks that have ripped through South Africa recently have becoming a trending topic on Twitter, and people tweet their disgust.

In the wake of reports that Zulu king Goodwill Zwelithini said that foreigners much go, a wave of xenophobic violence has hit South Africa.

He has since denied saying that, claiming, through the Royal Household Trust that the media "twisted" his words.

"He then urged the police to apply the law firmer [sic] and catch those who violate the country's laws coming from outside and return them to whence they come. We find nothing offensive [about] this, nor anything xenophobic in it or about it," Trust chairman Judge Jerome Ngwenya said.

According to ENCA Yesterday President Jacob Zuma spoke out against the attacks while unveiling a monument to slain struggle icon Chris Hani.

Hani, he said, had been welcomed by foreigners during his exile.

“We also emphasise that no amount of economic hardship and discontent will ever justify attacking foreign nationals.”

According to News24 two foreign nationals were critically injured yesterday after a shop was petrol bombed in W Section in Umlazi.

“A Somali owned shop in W Section was torched with a petrol bomb and it was engulfed by flames while two Somalians were still inside,” the website quotes a police source as saying.

“The two were rushed to the Prince M’Shiyeni Memorial Hospital for care. It is unclear how many people targeted the shop or why they did so.’

AFP reported that about 1,000 foreigners in Durban had fled their homes, and BDLIVE reported that at least three died after violent attacks yesterday.

"The deaths were reported in Chatsworth and Umlazi. Elsewhere in Durban, the police found several bodies, but it is unclear whether they are of foreign nationals or South Africans," BDLIVE reported.

Police spokesman Major Thulani Zwane said: "We don’t know how many foreigners have been killed so far but ... cases of murder have been opened.

"We are still collating information from ... police stations."

A protest march against xenophobia was broken up by police using teargas, water cannons and stun grenades earlier this week.

Police initially approved the march, which was scheduled to start at King Dinuzulu Park, but withdrew permission after being alerted to a threat of violence from an opposition group.

A group of taxi drivers attempted to block the intersection of Dr Prixley kaSeme Street and King Dinuzulu Road, just a stone's throw from the park.

Police succeeded in removing the taxis but city manager S'bu Sithole felt it was still too dangerous for the march to proceed.

Africans and South Africans have taken to social media to express their horror at the attacks.

- See tweets and video from original TimesLive article