Forced nomadicism...!
OK, so I don't think "nomadicism" is actually a word...but is worth a try! And it truly describes my state right now: am in forced "exile" in my own country. How weird is that? Let's go back to April 5 though, when I last posted on here. In the past 2 months Zimbabwe has had an election (presidential AND parliamentary); failed to release presidential results for over a month after the election; released skewed results; holding a re-run in June. Oh, and in-between all that I was almost denied re-entry into Zim after a trip to Botswana, and then told I had to leave the country in 2 days -- which was then extended to 2 weeks. And therefore took myself down to Cape Town. Wow....
The elections? I'm sure I can't add anything new to the discussion around Zim's obviously flawed elections. Needless to say, we are still waiting for change. Imagine, even sitting in another country, I hesitate to write too much about anything political because I know how peculiar they can be with their "media" laws in Zim and I would hate to be refused entry a second time due to this (severely neglected!) blog!! But quite clearly we need change, we want change, and currently Zim is experiencing over 1,000,000% inflation. Insanity? Yea...
I arrived in South Africa to witness the xenophobic violence that has hit this country in the past two weeks. Your heart bleeds for these Zimbabweans, Mozambicans, Angolans, Somalians who are here legally and who are not in a position to return to the chaos of their own countries -- and who have now been displaced, attacked or killed simply because they are from a different African country. Why did this happen? Supposedly because foreigners are taking jobs away from South Africans. Truly? I don't know. I feel there is not enough information shared in S.A. about the need for foreign skills. For example, we have a severe shortage of teachers in South Africa. Without foreign teachers, well-qualified foreign teachers, South African students would not get an education.
Another point: during South Africa's liberation struggle foreign countries gave refuge to thousands of South Africans involved in the struggle. Other African countries gave us military bases nad tremendous support, without which we may not have achieved freedom. And we repay these foreigners' children, now seeking refuge in South Africa, with death and complete alienation. It is disgusting.
I have always had mixed feelings about being a South African. As a child I felt ashamed to be a product of the apartheid system and to be living in a country that so obviously discriminated against certain sectors of society. But after 1994 I felt liberated, as an individual and as a citizen. I felt like my country of birth had done something monumental -- taken freedom without heeding the natural pull towards civil war. We achieved what many countries have not achieved: a rainbow nation.
But during the past two weeks I have again felt ashamed to be South African. At a time when we should all be working together to build a stronger country and continent we have taken the lower road, the more shameful road of attacking people who are "different." We should know better.
The elections? I'm sure I can't add anything new to the discussion around Zim's obviously flawed elections. Needless to say, we are still waiting for change. Imagine, even sitting in another country, I hesitate to write too much about anything political because I know how peculiar they can be with their "media" laws in Zim and I would hate to be refused entry a second time due to this (severely neglected!) blog!! But quite clearly we need change, we want change, and currently Zim is experiencing over 1,000,000% inflation. Insanity? Yea...
I arrived in South Africa to witness the xenophobic violence that has hit this country in the past two weeks. Your heart bleeds for these Zimbabweans, Mozambicans, Angolans, Somalians who are here legally and who are not in a position to return to the chaos of their own countries -- and who have now been displaced, attacked or killed simply because they are from a different African country. Why did this happen? Supposedly because foreigners are taking jobs away from South Africans. Truly? I don't know. I feel there is not enough information shared in S.A. about the need for foreign skills. For example, we have a severe shortage of teachers in South Africa. Without foreign teachers, well-qualified foreign teachers, South African students would not get an education.
Another point: during South Africa's liberation struggle foreign countries gave refuge to thousands of South Africans involved in the struggle. Other African countries gave us military bases nad tremendous support, without which we may not have achieved freedom. And we repay these foreigners' children, now seeking refuge in South Africa, with death and complete alienation. It is disgusting.
I have always had mixed feelings about being a South African. As a child I felt ashamed to be a product of the apartheid system and to be living in a country that so obviously discriminated against certain sectors of society. But after 1994 I felt liberated, as an individual and as a citizen. I felt like my country of birth had done something monumental -- taken freedom without heeding the natural pull towards civil war. We achieved what many countries have not achieved: a rainbow nation.
But during the past two weeks I have again felt ashamed to be South African. At a time when we should all be working together to build a stronger country and continent we have taken the lower road, the more shameful road of attacking people who are "different." We should know better.
posted by VN at 5:11 AM
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