By RFPosted on 03-09-2019Modified on 03-09-2019 at 15:53

On the night of Monday to Tuesday, new incidents erupted in the township of Alexandra, one of the poor districts of Johannesburg where many foreigners live. Several stores were looted and burned.

While there has been little reaction so far from the South African authorities, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa " condemned " on Tuesday, " in the strongest terms ", the violence. xenophobic who shake the country since Sunday night, considering them " totally unacceptable ".

" I condemn in the strongest terms the violence that spreads in four provinces " of the country, including economic capitals, Johannesburg, and political, Pretoria, said the head of state in a video posted on his Twitter account . " Attacks against foreign traders are totally unacceptable, something that can not be allowed in South Africa. "

I condemn the violence that has been spreading a number of our provinces in the strongest terms. I'm interested in the security cluster today to make sure that we keep a close eye on these acts of violence and find ways of stopping them. pic.twitter.com/sizZkwIyPO

Cyril Ramaphosa 🇿🇦 (@CyrilRamaphosa) September 3, 2019

The violence erupted on Sunday in southern Johannesburg and moved to Alexandra township on Monday night as the crowd attacked foreign-owned businesses. The report on Tuesday: about fifty stores destroyed, some burned, and seven people arrested.

Recurring phenomenon

Who do we find behind these attacks? The police are talking about criminal elements, spontaneous acts, people taking advantage of the chaos to loot, but various civil society organizations mention planned attacks targeting foreigners.

Alexandra is a district where live nearly 200 000 people on 7 km, including many foreigners, because it is a central and cheap.

This phenomenon of xenophobic violence is not new in the country . There is a permanent tension between poor and foreign South Africans. The country welcomes thousands of people from all over the continent: Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia ... And every 3 or 4 years, there is a peak of violence. The locals accuse foreigners of taking their jobs and being responsible for all the traffic.

â–ş Also read: Xenophobic fever is causing chaos in Johannesburg

    On the same subject

    Domestic Violence in South Africa: A woman dies every eight hours

    South Africa: xenophobic fever sows chaos in Johannesburg

    South Africa: foreigners targeted by a new call to protest

    South Africa: Zulu leader Mangosuthu Buthelezi leaves the leadership of IFP

    South Africa is home to the second most polluted sulfur dioxide zone in the world

    comments