‘Collective Xenophobia’ Or simply a Crime Prone South Africa

Crime in South Africa is almost a way of life especially for women. Only one in nine rapes is reported to the police. The 2013/14 crime statistics show that South Africa experienced two of the worst years in the last decade from a crime reduction point of view. In 2015, xenophobic killings have arrived again. What has sparked off this orgy of brutal killings in one of Africa’s most promising democracies and economies? Where is the much praised Ubuntu philosophy that helped South Africa to overcome the post-Apartheid revenge and blood-thirsty feelings that gave way to truth and reconciliation? The post-apartheid political transition in South Africa did not fully address the political economic question, and hence the xenophobic violence which is a symbolic expression of a deeper grudge against an unjust and unequal economic growth. This, however, should not justify xenophobic violence, but rather should put it into a broader perspective the South African post-apartheid reconstruction and distribution of resources. South Africans use violence to deal with both personal and societal challenges and poor communities have been frustrated by post-apartheid South Africa. Had it not been for ordinary South Africans and civil society, this crisis would have been far worse. President Zuma argues that the actions of a minority should not be used to stereotype 50 million people. While those responsible should face the law, care must be taken not to generalize that all South African are xenophobic.
See full lecture here or https://www.academia.edu/12139868/_Collective_Xenophobia_Or_simply_a_Crime_Prone_South_Africa