The Economist - USA (2022-06-11)

48 Middle East & Africa TheEconomistJune11th 2022

Ephraim Thobojame, also from Diepsloot,

says  that  he  is  keen  to  join  a  vigilante

group:  “Operation  Dudula  is  the  only  one

listening to us.”

In  South  Africa  crime  is  high  and  the

police are woeful. Academic evidence does

not, however, support the public’s percep­

tion  of  crime­causing  migrants.  The  for­

eign­born are less likely than locals to be in

prison.  A study  in  2018  concluded  there

was no link between the share of foreign­

ers in a municipality and the rates of four

of five common types of crime (the excep­

tion  was  property  crime).  The  connection

was  stronger  between  crime  and  the  pro­

portion  of  internal  migrants,  ie,  people

from other parts of South Africa. 

Migrants are often victims of crime, in­

cluding at the hands of police. At an Ethio­

pian  restaurant  in  Diepsloot  the  smell  of

roasted  coffee  wafts  through  the  room.  A

cow carcass hangs from a hook ready to be

diced into kitfo(raw beef with chili). It is a

gathering  place  for  the  Ethiopians  who,

with  Somalis  and  migrants  from  South

Asia, run the convenience (“spaza”) shops

in  many  townships.  All  of  the  merchants

describe abuse and extortion by police offi­

cers. Habitwold Shigute says that cash and

goods  worth  33,000  rand  (more  than

$2,200) were taken from his shop last year,

on  the  spurious  grounds  that  the  items

were  counterfeit.  “You  work  for  ten  years

and you get looted in ten minutes,” he says.

Overworked and over here

If not literally seen as robbers, migrants are

viewed as stealing jobs. In 2021 just 22% of

South  Africans  disagreed  with  the  state­

ment:  “Immigrants  take  jobs  away  from

people who were born in South Africa,” ac­

cording  to  the  hsrc.  “We’re  the  ones  who

are suffering,” says Mr Thobojame, outside

his shack in Diepsloot. “Our politicians lie.

They  said  they’d  create  jobs,  but  they  al­

ways create jobs for foreigners.” 

In  a  country  with  an  unemployment

rate of 35%, such views are perhaps unsur­

prising. But again the evidence belies pub­

lic opinion. The oecd, a club of mostly rich

countries,  reckons  that  immigrants  in­

crease  South  Africans’  employment  rates

and  incomes.  The  World  Bank  found  that

for  every  job  a  migrant  got  between  1996

and 2011, two were created for locals. 

Evidence has not quietened South Afri­

ca’s politicians, however. Actionsa, a party

founded in 2020, won 16% of the vote in Jo­

hannesburg  in  local  elections  last  year,

partly  because  of  its  hard  line  on  immi­

grants. The Economic Freedom Fighters, a

hard­left offshoot of the anc, claims to be a

pan­African  party.  But  as  its  poll  ratings

have flatlined, it has embarked on Dudula­

style stunts such as marching into restau­

rants and checking workers’ papers. Xeno­

phobia  is  also  found  in  ethnically­based

parties  such  as  the  Patriotic  Alliance,

whichmostlyappealstoso­called“colou­

reds”(peopleofmixedrace). Itsleaderhas

calledfor“Massdeportationsnow!!!”

PresidentCyrilRamaphosahaslikened

vigilantesto “apartheid oppressors”. But

hisgovernmentismakingit harderformi­

grantstolivelegallyinthecountry.Visa

applicationsthatusedtotakeweeksnow

dragonformanymonths.Processingof

asylumclaimshasgroundtoa halt.Apo­

rousborderandcorruptofficialsmakeit

easytocrossillegally.Long­awaitedlegis­

lationmeanttosimplifymigrationisbeing

written by securocrats, who have more

swaythangovernmenteconomists.

Zimbabweans,who make upabouta

quarterofmigrants,accordingtotheun,

facea particularlyuncertainfuture.After

anexoduspromptedbyhyperinflationand

politicalviolenceinZimbabweinthelate

2000s,SouthAfricagavelargenumbersof

Zimbabweanspermissiontostay.Thiswill

bewithdrawnattheendoftheyear.Mi­

grants will suffer, aswill relatives back

homewhorelyontheirremittances.The

policywillalsoaffectSouthAfricans,and

notinthewaythegovernmentexpects.

Foraglimpseofwhatmighthappen,

consider Robertson, a farming hamlet

160kmfromCapeTown.InMarcha protest

bySouthAfricansagainstfarmershiring

Zimbabweans was hijackedby migrants

fromLesotho,wholaterattackedtheirfel­

lowsouthernAfricans.Theysaidpeople

fromLesothowerebeingdeniedjobspick­

ingfruitandvegetables.HundredsofZim­

babweansfledtheNkqubelatownshipin

fearfortheirlives.Sincetheincidentanda

correspondingmediastormtheauthori­

tieshavecrackeddownonfarmers’useof

Zimbabweanlabour,onthegroundsthat

manyworkershavefakeorexpiredvisas.

(SomeZimbabweansadmittousingforged

documentsbutotherssaytheyarewithin

thegraceperiodoftheirpermits.)

“There’s nowork now,” says Onward

Ngezvenyu,aZimbabwean.Manyofhis

fellowcountrymenarepackingtheirbags.

Otherswanttostayuntiltheyhaveenough

moneyto buildahouseback home.Mr

Ngezvenyustressesthatwereitnotforza-

nu­pf, Zimbabwe’styrannicallyineptrul­

ingparty,hewouldnotbeinSouthAfrica.

“Wedon’twanttobehere.Wewanttowork

nexttoourfamily.Wewanttobenearour

kids,tohelpthemwiththeirhomework.”

Awayfromhometruths

Farmsarescramblingtohirenewworkers.

Grant Smuts,a third­generation farmer,

says heemploys just 5%of theZimba­

bweanshedida fewmonthsago,afteran

unannouncedinspectionbymorethana

dozengovernment officialsinApril. He

suspects thatmany who workedonhis

farmdidsoillegally,butarguesthatitwas

theroleoflabourbrokerstocheckpaper­

work.“TherearenotenoughSouthAfri­

cansinRobertsontofurnishtheworkre­

quired,”hesays.Whatismore,“Zimba­

bweansaremoreproductiveandwillingto

work.”Akilooftomatoesthatusedtocost

50 centstoharvestnowcoststwicethat,

becauseofthelowerproductivityoflocals.

“Ifwecanspeakthehonesttruth,local

peoplearelazypeople,”saysThamsanqa

JuliusRum,a residentofNkqubela.Many

SouthAfricansinthetownshiprelyonthe

moneytheygetfromrentingtinybitsof

theirbackyardsto Zimbabweansfor 500

randpershack,withanextrachargefor

wivesandchildren.“Theypaya lotofmon­

eyforrent,”hesays.“IftheZimbabweans

leaveit willbea problem.”

On awalkaroundNkqubela, Lennox

Mase,a localpastor,pointsouttheelectric­

itycordsthatrunfromplugsinSouthAfri­

cans’housestoZimbabweanor Basotho

shacks.South Africans donotpay their

ownelectricitybillsbuttheyinsistthatmi­

grantscoughup,henotes.“Thetownship

tavernsarefullofyoungSouthAfricans.

Youdon’tfindanyforeignersthere.”He

tellsofa Zimbabweanfriendwhoworkson

Sundaysratherthanattendinghischurch.

“Lennox,whenI’mbackinZimbabweI’ll

bea ChristianonSunday,”hisfriendtells

him.“NowI needtowork.”n

Unashamedlyintolerant

“Doyouagree/disagreewiththestatements

aboutcross-bordermigrants?”

SouthAfrica,2019,%responding

Source:Ipsos,HSRC

2

Aregood people

Dierentfromme

Violent

Dishonest

Takeourjobs

1007550250

*Neither agree nor disagree/don’t know

Agree

(strongly/somewhat)

Disagree

(somewhat/strongly)

*

Where’s the love?

Share of respondents who “dislike” having

immigrants or foreign workers as neighbours

Selected African countries, 2018 or latest available, %

Source:Afrobarometer

1

Ivory Coast

Zimbabwe

Ghana

Nigeria

3-country

average

Kenya

Morocco

South Africa

Sudan

403020100