Govt slack in tackling xenophobia: SAHRC

2010-07-21 19:06

Cape Town - A poor response from government departments on tackling xenophobic violence is "frustrating", the SA Human Rights Commission's chairperson Lawrence Mushwana told MPs on Wednesday.

Government departments had simply not responded to recommendations contained in a xenophobia report released by the SAHRC in March, Mushwana told Parliament's portfolio committee on justice.

"When the report was launched all various departments were there. They made an undertaking that in a month's time they were going respond. They were going to tell us what steps they were taking to implement some of the recommendations so that come another outbreak of xenophobia, we would be ready.

"But we had to write every time. It was only in my last attempt during June, that was when we started receiving the first response. This makes things difficult for us."

Apathetic response

Mushwana said the commission's task was to see whether the government had "put systems in place" to prevent an outbreak of xenophobic violence similar to 2008, but that the responses had been apathetic.

"We compile some of the reports. We make recommendations. We bring them here. We write. But no one answers."

Mushwana said he had asked one director general to provide feedback on the SAHRC's recommendations, but he was still waiting.

"When I briefed the security cluster last week, I raised the same issue. One minister complained that some of the recommendations don't relate to her department.

"I said your DG who attended the launch of the report raised the same issue. We called upon the person to write to us, but up to today nothing has come.

"It is frustrating on our part. We can only monitor. We check what government has done."

Determining the cause

Mushwana, who was in Parliament to present the SAHRC's xenophobia report to the committee, said the largest problem the government faced was in determining the causes of violence against foreigners.

"Until we know what is causing (this), we will not be able to solve it," he said.

During a recent meeting, high commissioners and ambassadors were "very critical" of the government for denying xenophobia.

"Their argument was that if it is pure crime, why is it targeting foreign nationals?" Mushwana said.

It was strange, he said, that vast areas in Limpopo were completely "Mozambican and Zimbabwean", but were completely peaceful.

"You don't find this in the rural areas. It is isolated. You don't find it in areas with traditional leaders either."

Driving force

National Police Commissioner Bheki Cele, who had sent individuals "at a low level" to try find out what was causing the violence, told Mushwana it had been found that "unfair competition" among businesses was one of the major factors.

Mushwana however, was not convinced by this.

"There are areas where you will say this is crime, but the ultimate question is, why is it targeted to foreign nationals?

"Is it crime? Is it xenophobia? What is the thinking behind it? They are here to take our jobs? Is it socio-economic?"

Mushwana said there was "a strong feeling" that somewhere there was "a hand driving these forces".

"When the soccer tournament ended, the question in the media was when is it starting? And it started. There is a programme somewhere that needs crime intelligence."

He said the SAHRC was glad however, by the action taken by police and military to quell the violence, which had convinced people the government was serious about the issue.

- SAPA