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You can't change the world, but..
15/05/2008 09:47
You can practice random acts of kindness and senseless acts of beauty. Try it.. - Rouie |
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basic human kindness
15/05/2008 09:56
thank you for this article, it echoes my own concern for the lack of very basic human kindness and even more so, basic respect for other human beings. i strongly believe that without that in place we as people of the earth will see violence increase year on year. the worst thing about us humans is that we can adapt to any situation and that is why we are so de-sensitised by what is happening more and more - charmaine |
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rule of law first
15/05/2008 09:59
This is a touching article indeed.But one needs to understand the frustration of locals, not because of job losses but because of blatant disregard of SA laws by foreigners, Zimbabweans in partifcular. These guys instead of obeying the rules, they create their own. You cannot come into someone's yard and create your own rules. I stay in Yeoville, believe me Zimbabweans, not Shonas, are the worst foreigners. I have witnessed their actions and I knew one day all will break loose. - Zolile |
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Democracy
15/05/2008 09:59
Good article. Has made me sit back, think about what is going on and realise that there are other people out there that are worse off than we are. Hoping that SA does not slip into where Zim is right now. Hopefully more people read this article, and we need to put our hands up and make a difference. - punter |
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Are you for real?
15/05/2008 10:02
You are so effusive in your praise for the woman who helps her boyfriend's wife...are you missing the part where she is sleeping with a married man???? In all likelihood this i simply a way for her to ease her conscience! This is how HIV spreads and why its decimating SSA. - VG |
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you're preaching to the converted
15/05/2008 10:08
you should be in Alex spreading this message. the scum creating this situation aren't reading your column dear. - tired of it all |
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ILLEGALS
15/05/2008 10:13
The xenophobic violence could have been circumvented had the President put policies in place from the outset regarding the influx of illegal immigrants, but NO.... he was not going to build a Wall of China.... Nobody suggested a Wall of China, common sense would have sufficed. - Ingrid |
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Democracy is not just for us
15/05/2008 10:23
Couldn't quite tie in the title of your piece to the content. As for the democracy twaddle, I cannot see where South Africa is better off under this one party dictatorship than it was under Apartheid. Everywhere one looks there is the typical Black Africa greed, corruption, and nepotism. Freedom you say..? If freedom means the chance to see this once great country go the way the rest of Africa has gone, then what's the point. - meltonmark |
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VG
15/05/2008 10:23
And you miss the point entirely that they are living in conditions and facing challenges that we can't even begin to imagine. Judge not...... - Gail |
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Very Pc
15/05/2008 10:25
Geargina.You forgot to mention the young men who died on our borders to defend our country against the very lawlessnes we are now experiencing.You also never mentioned the people who got maimed and killed by limpit mines in dustbins.Did these people die for our freedom to?Why is the ANC still listed as a terrorist org by the states this after 14 yrs of democracy.Are we not still being terrorised? - psycobabble |
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In context
15/05/2008 10:36
As someone who has a warm meal every day, you may find it very easy to judge the residents who are perfoming these acts. I am in no way saying they have a right to their actions but if you put yourself in their situations you would understand their realities. The foreigners are but a small part of what has gone terribly wrong with governement's programme of service delivery and poverty eradication for its own citizens. The exiled community was not as big compared to what we see in the country now - Nobody |
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@ Zolile
15/05/2008 10:39
Firstly does it matter that the 'frustration' as you put it with foreigners is about disregard for law and not the loss of jobs. The fact still remains that we have South African citizens who are committing atrocious acts. What is going through peoples minds when they consciously set out to physically harm someone on the grounds of xenophobia. May i remind you all that the Zimbabweans were some of the most welcoming towards our political exiles during apartheid, and we treat them like this.... - Dan |
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Democracy is dead
15/05/2008 10:46
When the masses start to take action it is because democracy has failed. South Africa is not a democracy, it is a one party state. This government does not care about its own citizens, it is more worried about the rights of foreigners and criminals. It is about time we took our country back form the foreigners, criminals and corrupt politicians. Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war. - Jason |
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basic respect for law is still paramount
15/05/2008 10:58
I agree with the sentiment, and basic values of humanity. But if there are illegal folk in place, THEY are breaking the law. We must uphold the law. In a humane way, however. We cannot waive our law becuase we feel sorry for all outside our borders. Waht about our own folk, many of whom are AS destitute because of non-delivery of jobs, welfare, and so on. WE are a sovereign entity as a country. We should be placing our humane sentiments to our own folk first. It is a primary obligation. - rational |
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@ VG
15/05/2008 10:58
I agree with VG. It seems to me that everyday I read the new, EVERYTHING is getting worse. NOTHING is getting better. Until there is a mind shift with the "masses", it will continue no matter how much of a difference we try to make. This, unfortunately only demoralises me, and as much as I hate to say it (because I don't want to), it may be time to leave... - Silver Surfer |
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Seriously - how many jobs are being "taken" by foreigners?
15/05/2008 11:10
Where are figures that prove, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that foreigners are taking thousands of local jobs? Immigrants need fast access to cash upon their arrival in another country. They work hard to make this happen. Think of our corner cafe's and our fish and chip shops:mostly set up by "immigrants" in the past. They become members of the community, they contribute to the economy. If there is a South African out there equal to the task, there is no reason why he / she should not get the job! - Gudrun |
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Democracy = Right?
15/05/2008 11:18
I know this is a little off the topic, but democracy was in the title! :) Can anyone explain to me why democracy is the holy grail? Why are we so brainwashed by the USA that all the world now subscribes to this mode of governing? Democracy is a system that aims to make everyone equal, while they are not. Why should a begger on the street have the same say as someone who starts and runs a billion-Rand corporation, creating jobs and revenue? Democracy is the glorification of mediocrity. - Bridget |
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'foreigners' deserve our gratitude
15/05/2008 11:19
Good article! The people of Nigeria, Zimbabwe and other African countries were instrumental in bringing down apartheid. They deserve our gratitude. Our government is compounding the crisis in Zim. The least citizens (ANC voters and others) can do is to treat so-called foreigners with dignity. - Louis |
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My sympathy is with the people in Alex
15/05/2008 11:26
While I don't approve of the violence, I feel sympathy for the people that are so frustrated with poverty, unemployment and an unsympathetic government, that they have to take the law into their own hands. Just imagine for a while that you don't have work, food or money, and your government allows millions of illegal immigrants to steal the few opportunities you have to make a bit of money. I feel for the people in Alex but if the government won't listen to them, what are they supposed to do? - Lee |
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To Georgina and VG
15/05/2008 11:47
Georgina, I enjoy the way you debate this particular topic and you present good thought-provoking points. However there is room for more debate on some of the points you made. I think "Nobody" made some good counter-points in his comments as well. To VG, could you please look beyond your "10 commandments" and regard a situation with a humane eye instead, please? And there are many ways in which AIDS is spread. - Jaco |
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change and pain
15/05/2008 11:55
the situation in alex,is not only needs to be addressed by the south africans but by the whole of africa, people should not be misled by media, the war in alex is not between the south africans and the zimbabweans.it is a war between the disadvanged south africans and the foreigners all over africa. and i believe that it will remain so for sometime to come unless we begin to control our border. south africa cannot be a host country of all foreigners in africa in the name of the struggle. - moloi maitse |
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So...
15/05/2008 11:55
So if you are not getting what you want out of life you can take the law into your own hands?
The government you elected has let us all down again. - MikaM |
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Dan
15/05/2008 12:14
That is another topic altogether, You are mistaken, Zimbabwe was not the most welcoming. Ask Zambians, Malawians on how they were treated in Zimbabwe in the 90's and 80's. My point is we have to make a split between sincere Shona and aggresive Ndebeles. the latter terrorise fellow Zimbabweans and blatantly challenge SA people in the streets of Yeoville etc. It is sad that it reached this far. But who is to blame? Surely not SA people. Look beyond Alex for a solution - Zolile |
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I agree!
15/05/2008 12:17
I agree with Georgina. The women of South Africa must show their compassion by opening their doors to let in foreign boyfriends. They must also try their utmost to feed their wives back home. We the kind people of S.A. must do away with borders. They separate people. Let our friends from Congo, Nigeria and other wonderful Africans all come to live among us. And we must look after them without complaining. - nkunzamnyama |
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Sad affairs
15/05/2008 12:17
While I'm worried how brutal the hate is directed at foreigners, I am more so worried when I read elsewhere on News24 how white citizens are told here to leave Africa because it is not their land...and no one cries about that? No law prohibit the hate speech directed at legal citizens who are contributing towards the economy of this country...? Where is democracy when I need it as a citizen? - Loraine |
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SA Police
15/05/2008 12:19
in the townships firing bullets (albeit rubber)at residents. Wow, how far we have come! - AJ |
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I am a Victim
15/05/2008 12:24
I really condem killings in Allex,Diepsloot,Attriageville ect,but when i remeber well,it was around 02h00 in the morning 15th october 2007,there was my wife,my 9 months old daughter,they break my door so fast and shot straight,i fell and all they need was money and our cellphones,they could hardly speak either one of our language.I was lucky i survived,where is Lucky Dube today,where is Mathe.This guys are so bad they dont care for human life.I am now crippled because of them.They must go. - Marweshe |
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Democracy - Bridget
15/05/2008 12:26
Actually Bridget, democracy is a way of choosing our leaders. Somewhere along the line we decided it also means liberty and freedom for all. The USSR also voted democratically for their leaders, they just had guns held to their heads at the ballots. The real name for the system of goverment the USA has is called Capitalism. The reason we like to call it the holy grail of goverment is because it supports a mostly strong middle class population, which we stil don't have in this country... - Nick |
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open your eyes
15/05/2008 12:41
Democracy does not exist. Everything is orchestrated to force the country to it's knees so that the egoist society of everyday man can look up, be down and scream for the government and world aids to intervene and this will mean that what will be dealt can't be opposed because you as the society has called for it. Welcome to the beginning of a very true NEW WORLD ORDER. One currency, one governing body and one world domination by a handful and it won't be you! so call a spade a spade! Corruption! - Conspiracy |
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so sad but true
15/05/2008 12:46
This is why crime here is so much more violent than elsewhere. It's not poverty, there are other poor nations around the world where crime happens but is not in the least as violent as it is here. Illegal immigrants may be the cause of some of our crime but the large majority of crime in this country is committed by locals. This country will never change for the better unless these people change their mindset to value human life more. I can't see it happening. - Zee |
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People of Alex...
15/05/2008 12:55
It saddens me what has happened there.
My heart goes out to all who suffered.
Hopefully, sanity will prevail.... - Werner |
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Same old story
15/05/2008 13:01
Racism still dictates in SA. I witness black on black spats, albeit different "tribes", every day. I grew up as a child knowing nothing else but that race counts for all, and now 50 years later its still just all the same. - Also tired of it all |
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Times have not changed only the bullets
15/05/2008 13:02
Shame im sure Hector was an innocent bystander that didint throw a rock to crack somebodys skull open.I suppose some of us was in school busy studying to better our futures and not screaming liberation before education.Times have not changed only the bullets that is now made with rubber. - shane |
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Democracy
15/05/2008 13:05
Very inciteful article, however i was watching morning live the other day when Vuyo interviewed one of the affected immigrants, who was very specific on that thier attackers were Zulu people and i say damn, the whole of aAlexander is full of Zulu people or we seem like an easy target.I'm sure there are Tswana and Sotho's who are involved in this but he just had to sy "Zulu people attacked us. On top of all that i do believe that foreigners ought to be protected. But the Zulu thing still.......... - Thokozani |
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To Marweshe
15/05/2008 13:14
I deeply symphathasize with you on the incident that happened, hope that you recovering well. But i'm totally against painting people with the same brush. Yes i agree there are foreigners who are bad news, same way as there are those who are making a decent living and contibuting emmensley to the economy of this country. We need to come up with a system that will be able to determine bad potatoes from the sack.Hope you gt well my brother. - Thokozani |
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Sorry but.....
15/05/2008 13:39
I still think the Zimbabweans screwed up their own country. Those begging for help in SA today are the same ones who danced for joy when the farmers were thrown off their land in Zim. They now expect sympathy for a situation they created themselves. Where will we all run to when our own country ends up the same as Zim? Maybe we should start building boats right now.... - Kenko |
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Xenophobia
15/05/2008 13:49
I find it very interesting that the gov is quick to refer to it as Xenophobia. Do they think we are stupid? It is ethnic hate pure and simple. Call it what it is - Ethnic Cleansing. Anyone remember Rwanda? Same excuses there as well, "they are taking our work and our food" etc. Life in SA is about to get very interesting. - MajorPain |
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Hang on
15/05/2008 13:56
Hang on.
1. We can't go around killing people. But. We don't seem to understand the frustration of the locals that are affected by this influx.
I have a question. Why aren't the Zimbabweans taking responsibility for what they have allowed to go on for much too long? Why are they not home taking part in the new struggle for their freedom rather than taking other people's jobs? Surely they hold some responsibility for that, or at the very least, moreso than a South African suffering because of them?
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Zolile u out of order
15/05/2008 13:57
Zolile you are out of line. It is the Shonas who are attacking people back home! It is the Shonas who massaccared thousands of Ndebeles during Gugurahundi and yes it is the Shonas who commit crime since they started coming to S.A. recently. The Ndebeles are the ones who used to come here and there was never all this nonsense about foreigners committing crime. Pliz dont start about Shonas! They are the most corrupt people I had ever come across. Look at what they did to Zimbabwe - Foreigner |
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Would YOU swop your husband for food????
15/05/2008 13:57
what I undertsand both of you to be saying is that its ok to knowingly sleep with someone's husband as long as you're sending the wife food parcels as compensation?! This has nothing to do with the 10 commandments. Would either of you feel comfortable swapping your spouses? would a food parcel comfort you? Jaco, have you been listening to Dr. Beetroot? Most HIV+ people contracted the disease through sex and multiple partners increases your risk. - VG |
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THEY MUST GO
15/05/2008 14:00
they should go, they steal and have no regard for law. They broke into my house in Alex and stole everything they could lay their hands on.The policemen even knew their names cause of their crime spree but they always managed to get out.RDP's are been stolen by this bastards, jobs are taken by them cuz they work for half the wages offered, go to all the restaurants in Sandton, Rosebank etc.Govt cannot open flood gates to our country like that, we used to stay in refugee camps and never broke laws - tk |
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A lesson for us all
15/05/2008 14:00
For democracy to work, a country needs a population that are all more or less on the same level; intellectually, morally and educationally. Where the country is more important than our own pockets. Unfortunately no African country fit that profile. The Americans are sadly mistaken in thinking they have a workable political solution in exporting democracy to "developing" countries. Eventually democracy will fail here as it has failed in Zim and other countries to the north. - Kenko |
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@Zolile
15/05/2008 14:07
Zolile because some foreigners break some rules does not justify our people from becoming judge, jury and hangman and callously attacking women and children. We are then gulity of breaking the biggest rule - thou shalt not kill. Perhaps our prcedents of lawlessness is rubbing off on them. What taxi's obey our basic rules of the road? Take the plank out of our eyes before we take the splinter out of the foreigners eyes. - Filemon |
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