Durban’s ring of xenophobia

Lindelani township residents in Ntuzuma were left in shock on Monday night as violent attacks on shopkeepers spread, reportedly in response to Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini’s call for foreigners to return to their native countries.

Tuesday night’s violence followed hot on the heels of earlier attacks on foreign nationals in Chatsworth, uMlazi and KwaMashu.

The violence started at around 10pm, when a crowd of locals marched in unison towards foreign-owned stores in the area. The raging crowd gained entry into the stores by breaking down security measures on every store in sight and helping themselves to items inside the stores. Looters took not only smaller items such as groceries, but also big-ticket items like beds and fridges.

Ironically, in one case, a store where attacks were initiated was called ‘The Cage’ – victims had indeed become trapped there and had to free themselves before fleeing. The looters in this case were taken by surprise when they found that the occupants had managed to escape. It was unclear who had alerted the owners of the cage that violence was coming, but much like the Johannesburg attacks, letters had been circulated, indicating that foreign business owners should leave the area for good – and fast.

The looters seemed intent on burning down The Cage, which also houses an ATM. One young man succeeded in preventing the crowd from torching the store, pleading with them that the ATM would be destroyed and that the neighbouring home would also be in danger.

When police arrived at the scene, they were unable to help, being immediately pelted with stones and driven away.

The angry crowd moved quickly on to kwaNdlanzi and Ntuzuma, where they forced their way into more stores with the aid of machetes and sticks. Here, they removed the roofs of the area’s stores and removed groceries. Many local women gathered, apparently delighted, scooping groceries and carrying them home on their heads. Items like maize meal, flour and soap were top of the list – a common sight. Even young children participated in the looting, grabbing a couple of items each under their armpits and chewing carelessly at stolen toffees before speeding off, returning for a few more moments later.

According to reports, a youngster was fatally shot at KwaNdlanzi. KwaZulu-Natal SAPS’s Jay Naicker said, “We can confirm an incident that occurred on 13 April in KwaNdlanzi area, Lindelani. He sustained three gunshot wounds where he died on arrival.

“Ntuzuma police are investigating a case of murder, but no arrests have been made yet.”

As the violence on foreign nationals spread around Durban’s townships, there has simultaneously been a growing concern with regard to the townships’ previously violent history. Three of the townships – Mlazi, KwaMashi and Lindelani – all have a violent history, having been significant battlegrounds during Apartheid.

A terrified Somali shopkeeper who did not want to be named said he and his two brothers had come to South Africa because their lives were threatened in their own country, but that he felt they were better off dying in their own backyards than in a new country where nobody cared. “I think we will be returning home as soon as possible, even if it means we risk death by returning there – but we have no choice. We have not wronged South Africans, but we can tell from the attacks that there is so much hatred for people of our kind in this country.”

At the same time, Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba has announced that his department welcomes requests from foreign nationals who want to return home and that they will get all the assistance they need to arrive safely in their birth countries.

Scenes in Ntuzuma underlined that the damage caused was incalculable. Terror was written in the eyes of many in the crowd.

Lindelani resident Bongekile Beauty Gwala said: “I was returning from a church service at about 10pm on Monday night when I saw a crowd of people beating and chasing some Somali nationals away like dogs and stealing their stock. I am so terrified. I am pleading with fellow South Africans in my community to stop this madness and work with police officers and government to arrive at an amicable resolution without spilling innocent people’s blood. Residents must work with the police to determine what wrong, if indeed anything, the foreign nationals have done us. This way we will achieve peace instead of taking the law into our own hands.

“The most painful part is that residents cannot work with police. When police come to assist, they are stoned. I’m so afraid. It’s unheard of that such violence can be committed by humans on other humans – I had never really thought of it as real until I witnessed it myself.”

The SAPS’s Colonel Naicker said that police were on high alert to monitor the violence, but it is unclear whether this will be effective if police are being stoned by angry residents. Naicker said, “Areas in and around Durban (Isiphingo, uMlazi, Chatworth, KwaMashu and Inanda) have been affected by acts of criminality. Public Order Police National Intervention Unit and tactical response team members have been deployed to monitor the area to prevent criminal activities, and are on high alert.

The violence was at a serious level, Naicker said, but some arrests had been made. “Since the violence started we have received reports of two murders at Umlazi, two in Chatsworth and one in Ntuzuma. Three South Africans and two foreigners were killed. Over the last two days alone, we have arrested 34 people for public violence, possession of unlicensed firearms and other offences. Four illegal firearms were seized.”

KwaZulu-Natal Premier Senzo Mchunu said, “Our people should realise that there are South Africans who have very close relations with foreign nationals. If our people do not want them, they must be very careful how they go about doing, that because it might bear harsh repercussions. The same fate can meet our people in other countries.”

Meanwhile, attacks on foreign nationals continue to spread in the city of Durban. On Tuesday, the attacks spread to the Durban city centre, where many foreign-owned shops were attacked on West Street. DM

Photo: Foreign children eat a meal provided by members of the community in Isipingo, south of Durban, April 13, 2015. Several hundred foreign nationals have sought refuge in the tents after xenophobia driven violence forced them to flee their homes and businesses. REUTERS/Rogan Ward