30 January 2022
Vimbayi Mahachi
Johannesburg- The Zimbabwean Embassy has released a warning to Zimbabweans who reside in South Africa to be on the lookout and abide by the law.
This comes after the Consulate said it received disturbing reports concerning in the form of threats on Zimbabweans by South African vigilante groups.
In the recent past there has been attacks that have affected Zimbabweans who are living in the Gauteng and Limpopo provinces.
The attacks were perpetrated by South Africans who claim that foreigners, specifically Zimbabweans, have rendered them (South Africans) jobless as the foreigners are preferred by employers.
Last week this publication reported of ‘Operation Dudula’ where mobs embarked on sprees of evicting illegal foreign nationals, the last being the clearing of Bara Taxi Rank (Soweto) and removal of so-called illegal foreign residents in Reconstruction Development Programme houses (RDP) in Turfformtein, Johannesburg.
The seige, with no legal backing but seemingly with involvement of South African Police Services (SAPS) was being pushed by Umphakathi (the Community).
Umphakathi in the company of SAPS has been on the rampage evicting foreign nationals from their places of dwelling.
The situation was exercerbated by Economic Freedom Fighters leader, Julias Malema, who was seen addressing reporters and community members that he was headed to the Mall of Africa where a restaurant named Dream was employing more Zimbabwean nationals than South Africans.
According to a statement released by the Zimbabwean embassy on their official Twitter handle, there have been unspecific threats made to Zimbabwean nationals and that they should leave the country on a particular date.
“The Embassy and the Consulates urge all Zimbabwe nationals in the Republic of South Africa to be vigilant and law-abiding. Holders of the Zimbabwe Exemption permits who choose to remain in the country after 31 December 2022 should start the process of migrating to other visas early.
In order to assist us to effectively represent you, the Embassy and the Consulates request you to share information with us,” read the Zimbabwean Embassy statement.
In the statement the authorities said the Embassy is currently in talks with relevant South African government departments on the matters that concern the safety of Zimbabweans who live in South Africa.
It is not the first time that Zimbabweans have been on a quandary in as far as residing in South Africa is concerned.
In 2015 Xenophobic attacks were triggered by the Zulu
King, Goodwill Zwelithini when he declared that all foreign nationals must be driven out of South Africa.
At that time Al-Jazeera reported that at a rally in Pongola, Northern Kwazulu-Natal, in late March of 2015, the monarch was reported to have said that foreigners were changing the nature of South African society.
Zwelithini was quoted as saying:
“We urge all foreigners to pack their bags and leave.”
In the ensuring mele businesses were looted, homes wrecked, many foreigners were slaughtered and thousands were forced to flee and seek refuge away from their homes.
It is unfortunate that even those foreign nationals who were law abiding were targeted as well.
At that time most of those affected were from Malawi, Zimbabwe, Somalia and the DR Congo.
South Africans have always been bemoaning the presence of foreign nationals in their country.
It is fact that foreigners from Southern African countries such as Zimbabwe and Malawi are hard working.
It is a fact as well that South Africans are not of the hard working type.
It is now that the Corona virus induced global recession has affected South African industries and many were laid off work that South Africans have been jerked into reality.
It is unfortunate that South Africans concerntrate on pleasure than work. Now that reality is sinking into their minds that they fight brothers from the African continent.
It is however sad that attacks are always perpetrated on black people.
To black South Africans, foreigners are black people from other countries yet there are foreigners of Indian origin, white people from Europe, Asians and many more but attacks are ever channelled towards black people.
A black brother against another black brother.
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