Cele must act on thugs, vigilantes

In societies where the rule of law is still respected and enforced, it would be astounding for an ordinary citizen to stand in front of a minister of police and threaten public violence.

Yet, that is exactly what happened yesterday when the leader of Operation Dudula – the organisation which wants action taken against illegal foreigners – gave our Police Minister Bheki Cele a month in which to clear out what the organisation labels foreign criminal squatter camps in Soweto … or “prepare a mass funeral” because the locals will go in “with guns blazing”.

That an almost emotionless Cele listened and did nothing – despite the law being flouted in front of him – is not surprising in a country where proper policing and law enforcement has become almost nonexistent in some places.

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Many protesters, long before Operation Dudula, have seen that causing havoc and mayhem and threatening people gets the government to sit up and take notice. They have also seen the lack of consequences for protests and, more recently, vigilante marches and actions.

They have also, it must be said, seen very little in the way of law enforcement when it comes to the country’s immigration statutes, as foreigners, both genuine asylum seekers and economic migrants, have poured across our porous borders.

The xenophobia in this country is rising and the emergence of groups like Operation Dudula shows that ordinary people are taking the law into their own hands, doing the work our government should have done decades ago.

However, the threatening words of Operation Dudula notwithstanding, it is inevitable that foreigners who are targeted by such groups will start fighting back and that it will not be long before we have a potential civil war within our borders between locals and foreigners.

Action must be taken against both sides: foreign criminals and local vigilantes.