Zimbabwe’s main opposition Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) has called on the South African government to take action to address the anti-immigrant sentiment in the country following this week’s murder of a Zimbabwean national.
Elvis Nyathi was killed on Wednesday night in Johannesburg’s Diepsloot by a mob that was moving door-to-door demanding passports from foreign nationals.
He stoned and later burnt by South African nationals who have in recent months accused African foreign nationals of taking their jobs and contributing to the high crime rate in the country.
“The murder of Nyathi is a regrettable affront to ubuntu and a direct violation of Article 5 of the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights which binds the whole continent and provided that every individual has the right to the respect of the dignity inherent in a human being and to the recognition of his legal status,” CCC spokesperson Fadzai Mahere said.
She said Nyathi “has become the tragic victim of the indiscriminate door-to-door raids by a vigilante group that targets African foreign nationals outside the confines of the law and without due process.”
“We call for the immediate arrest and prosecution of the perpetrators to ensure that justice is done.”
Ironically, South African police said they had arrested some 24 Zimbabwean nationals following the violence in Diepsloot while none of the South Africans behind the murder had been picked up.
“We further call for the de-escalation of the anti-immigrant rhetoric by public figures and shadowy groups who are fomenting the abuse, extortion and violence against African nationals,” Mahere said.
The call comes in the wake of anti-immigrant sentiment by some senior officials of South Africa’s ruling African National Congress which is mainly targeted at nationals of fellow African countries.
JN/APA