In Johannesburg, immigrants fear new wave of violence

The memory of the riots of 2008 hangs over Yeoville, a poor neighbourhood of Johannesburg where many immigrants reside. For several weeks, as World Cup fever has swept through the country, the possibility of new violence has been evoked by several South African newspaper headlines. Two years ago, 62 people were killed -- and many more injured and displaced -- when armed groups of residents attacked immigrant workers, most of them from Zimbabwe and Mozambique, and pillaged immigrant-owned shops. The violence was attributed to accusations that immigrants were upping the crime rate and monopolising the few jobs available.

Today, the tensions between impoverished black South Africans and immigrant communities remain high in Yeoville, and many fear that violence will once again break out when the World Cup is over.

29-year-old Blanchard (who did not wish to disclose his full name), is a Congolese student who has lived in South Africa since 2005. He thinks the fears of post-World Cup riots are not without foundation. “By repeating over and over that the World Cup was going to be something extraordinary, some South Africans ended up believing that a miracle was going to happen”, Blanchard explained. “But today, their situation is the same. So here and there we’re hearing these people, frustrated at not getting anything out of the World Cup, saying that as soon as it’s over, they’ll drive us out”.

No longer just speculation

Being on the receiving end of comments made in the street, insults hurled in taxis, and disparaging remarks from certain policemen have become routine experiences for most Yeoville residents. Nkasolathi Gumbo, a schoolteacher from Zimbabwe, blames the South African government for not helping poorly educated South Africans understand that immigrants are not there “to steal their jobs, but to help compensate for a lack of qualified workers in the country”. If new riots break out, Nkasolathi will not hesitate to send his family back to Zimbabwe, even if the situation in that country is catastrophic.

“At this point, these are no longer just rumours”, explained Walter da Silva, president of the NGO Displaced and Migrant Persons Support Programme (DMPSP). “Our sources in the neighbourhoods are signaling both verbal and physical attacks. A Somalian store was already set on fire in Cape Town and other incidents were reported in Johannesburg”.

According to da Silva, the violence is not just the result of the World Cup and the shattered illusions it has engendered. “It’s been six months that we’ve seen an escalation in violence”, he said. “Racial tensions are always there. With or without the World Cup, riots were to be feared. But on a scale of 1 to ten, the risk has today gone up to 7”.

Active in most immigrant-heavy neighbourhoods, the DMPSP pushes local authorities to invest more in education, violence prevention, and promotion of tolerance. As the World Cup draws to an end, the time has come for action: security teams are out on foot in the neighbourhoods that have been left behind by reforms pursued by the African National Congress (ANC). Their objective is to avoid all conflict and protect the image of a country whose reputation has been bolstered by what has been viewed as a smoothly run World Cup.