Xenophobia in Jeppestown : IMC-SA

JOHANNESBURG - The singing could be heard from early this morning. A group of young men bristling with sticks and beer bottles were roving the street chorusing the song 'umshini wam'. They had spent their night intimidating and beating foreigners living in the street. By the afternoon, tensions were running high as residents stood on the pavements watching the extrication of foreign nationals. The police arrived, their shotgun barrels leaning out the open windows of their vehicles. As they stepped out, demonstrating to all onlookers that their shotguns were loaded, a few residents made their ways to their rooms to retrieve what they could carry and under police supervision, retreated from their homes. Packed tightly into the awaiting police vans, their faces betrayed only silent defeat. Onlookers jeered and whistled, young children joining in to herald the evacuation of immigrants from Fox street.

Speaking to south African local residents, they echo the hatred that flared up in Alexandra a week ago: a room these days costs one 1-8 [R1,800] and these foreigners pay it! They must go back where they came from! Some of the bystanders at the police vans made their message clear with keys scrawled on pickets – GO but leave the keys to your rooms.

Others like Thomas, is more diffident though weaving his sense in drunken slurs. These things must happen wherever God is – in Israel or Iraq... But we are all neighbours and can build our community to be one. He affirms that he is Zulu and has the highest respect for Zulu tradition before going to find his Tanzanian friends. Some of the residents stand by shaking their heads in disapproval of the fighting. But rejection of the mob rule is short-lived as the mob approaches and switches to encouragement.

Three public order unit policemen following the mob suddenly load shells into their shotguns and everyone scatters off the street. The bullets whistle down the length of the street, hitting the wall at its dead end with a thwack. Residents peer furtively around corners and the pranksters goad the police onward. Soon, the bullets are shot down the alleyways between the tenements but fortunately no cries of the wounded are heard. Once the police leave, the crowd returns to the street and disquiet returns.

south African residents take pictures of the evacuated immigrants. The sign the man on the left is holding displays a key -> GO but leave your keys behind