Xenophobia: An African tragedy

By Kambarure Kaputu

Ghana's first president Kwame Nkrumah said at the founding of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) in 1963, “Our objective is an African union now. There is no time to waste. We must unite now or perish.” On 11 July 2000, all 53 African leaders embarked on a quest for further unity as set out in their objectives, Article 3 (a) and met in Lome, Togo, where they signed what was to be known as the Constitutive Act of the African Union which later entered into force in 2001 and the African Union (AU) was created.

As a crucial document that sets out the framework on how the African Union ought to conduct itself, all heads of state and governments declared by stating in the preamble: “Inspired by the noble ideals which guided the founding fathers of our continental organisation and generation of pan-Africanists in their determination to promote unity, solidarity, cohesion, and cooperation among the people of Africa and African states...”. This was the founding ideal that led to the establishment of the AU, believing that without unity, the AU has no legitimacy to agitate towards development. Another element or tool which holds Africa back is the old tactic of divide and rule.

Thus, this ideal was believed to be multi-generational, flowing in the blood of the current and future generations. Nonetheless, it seems like it is not the case following the recent xenophobic attacks on our fellow African brothers and sisters in South Africa.

An African tragedy is when fellow Africans turn against each other, it is when Africans deliberately forget major unpleasant events in their history, the discrimination, torture and oppression committed by the colonialists, it is when there is no spirit of Ubuntu (togetherness) amongst Africans, it is when Africans forget how important unity is to Africa's success story. No doubt, our forefathers might be turning in their graves at this point, disappointed at all of us. We should all ask ourselves, is this what they envisioned? Do we still think that without unity the dream for a developed Africa can be achieved? Our aim was freedom, and one such freedom was freedom from fear which is currently denied to our fellow Africans in South Africa. Another was the right to self-determination and democracy, was given to South Africans in 1994 through the collective support of fellow African states. It was unity which brought about this continental wave of freedom and independence, brothers and sisters holding hands in solidarity and working hard to bring about freedom and socio-economic development to all African states.

With tears in our eyes, one could say what is currently transpiring in South Africa is unacceptable and ought to be condemned by all Africans. There are a lot of critical developmental issues to be dealt with, ranging from a leadership crisis to unemployment, from shattered businesses to costly schools and hospitals, from economic exploitation to lost cultures and traditions, rather than exercising hatred and violence.

There is a crucial need for understanding not vengeance, Ubuntu not victimisation. It is the responsibility of every African to unite in love and with a heart full of a desire for unity, and for us to come up with collective, mature solutions for the issue of xenophobia. It is our responsibility to take it upon ourselves to continue the long march of solidarity with those who came before us, a march for a just, equal, free, caring, united and prosperous Africa.

Our goal should be to explore all options that allow people to earn a living so that the social welfare system does not create permanent dependencies. Immigrants of whatever colour or hue can all make contributions; but we focus often on the negatives and allow gross generalisations about crime to determine the narrative. And our society needs to tackle the severe social trauma that finds expression in such violence - whether it is domestic violence against partners or children, or against foreigners. On the economics front, Africans need partnerships between government and business in tackling unemployment and inequality - not adversarial approaches that apportion blame rather than solutions. Our leaders and others in positions of influence should recognise that their statements are powerful weapons - and that they need to be used carefully and responsibly.

Ubuntu can be a powerful idea and movement to highlight our common humanity and the kind of world that South Africa advocated on its re-entry to the international community. But it will require more than just the rhetoric, branding or police units to create a lived reality for Africans and all those others who live on the continent and make it the diverse, dynamic society that it is

Furthermore, let us built a spirit of cooperation, solidarity and unity as outlined in our objectives, building a more perfect union, so stable that no African feels left out. We need to choose hope over fear, solidarity over conflict, we need to proclaim an end to hatred and violence. The time has come to choose our better history, to carry on that powerful ideal passed on from generation to generation, keeping in mind and heart that all are equal, all are free and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness. Remember, “Umuntu Ngumuntu Ngabantu”.



*Kambarure Kaputu is a student at the University of Namibia's Faculty of Humanities doing a BA (honours) Media Studies and Political Science.