Dear friends and fellow South Africans,
When xenophobia flared into brutal killings in Gauteng in 2008, the IFP was vocal in speaking against the violence and the undercurrent of hatred and discrimination. We also lamented the fact that this outburst was predictable and had in fact been predicted, yet nothing had been done to prevent it.
The violence quickly spread to the Western Cape and KwaZulu Natal and, before long, our country was caught up in a whirlwind of debate over the rights of foreign nationals in South Africa, the porosity of our borders, the extra burden on our social services and how we could live out the vision of being brothers and sisters of our African soil, when so much stood between us.
What stood between us were the immense needs and challenges faced by our own people, and the immense needs and challenges of those coming to South Africa. If we could not meet the needs of our own citizens, or overcome our own challenges, how could we welcome these foreign nationals with open arms and an open heart?
The fact that xenophobic violence is flaring again, in the very place it flared before, tells us that we have not answered these questions, nor have we done what is needed to prevent a renewed fire of hatred and discrimination from engulfing our country.
The IFP has again spoken against the violence and called for tolerance and peace. But this time we will speak more loudly about the need to address the underlying cause of xenophobia. It is not just the fear that someone will come in from outside and take what we ourselves lack and struggle to hold on to.