The violent attack on foreign nationals displays high levels of intolerance in our society.
Inasmuch as I do not condone what the shop owners did in Braamfischerville in Soweto, I did not expect such levels of thuggery and criminality. People driven by bitterness, jealousy, silliness and resentment over foreigners and that stems from a bloated sense of entitlement. If these shop owners were to close shop, will these thugs take over and run these business successfully, the answer is likely to be no.
The foreign shop owner was wrong to take the law into his own hands, but what make people think that it is right to loot shops belonging to foreign nationals? What is happening in Soweto is appalling. Since when do two wrongs make a right? South Africans need to learn to be tolerant, not only with foreign nationals but in general. As citizens of this beautiful country we need to understand that violence does not solve anything, but only makes matters worse.
Every time there are differences, we resort to violence, no matter the context. Labour disputes, services delivery marches, minor arguments in shebeens have all turned violent. What happened to resolving conflict through proper engagements? What is happening can never be right, we need to deter this from spreading to the rest of the country. What we are doing to fellow human beings is wrong. We cannot be treating others exactly how the apartheid treated Africans, How much better are we if we continue to treat others as outcasts?
Busi Kheswa, Gauteng Community Safety
