Why Xenophobic Attacks Are Persistent In South Africa | Explainer With Nelson Ettah

Added: 2026-05-25

[00:00:10]What you're about to find out about xenophobia in South Africa is going to be mind-boggling. The data and the statistics backing this hydra-headed monster that has happened since post-apartheid era up until the last incident few weeks ago is going to be mind-boggling. But of course, as always, we'd like you to join in on the conversation. What do you know about xenophobia and how do you think this can be brought to an end so that South Africans and other Africans can live together in peace in South Africa as it is in other part of the continent. As always, let's begin the matter with the background of xenophobia in South Africa. Of course, today we're looking at xenophobia and the threat to Africa's unity. This is very important, but to begin that conversation, I'd like to give you a very bit of a peripheral understand of what xenophobia really is.

[00:01:06]It's a Greek word, by the way, uh that xenos means stranger, you know, foreigner or outsider. And so, phobia, of course, we all know this one, is fear. Now, if you mix that brew together, you see xenophobia talking about fear of strangers or fear for foreigners or fear for outsiders. So, how we try to break this down, you know, to a a little bit of a a surface matter, we looked at the underlying, you know, conditions that has been triggering this. Um so, this is just a peripheral general overview of it in South Africa.

[00:01:38]There's something called the proximate and precipitants underlying causes of xenophobia. And of course, we also looked at the trigger.

[00:01:47]In the course of today's conversation, what all we'll be discussing with you would be around this proximate and precipitated uh causes of xenophobia and the triggers thereof. Now, I'm beginning to sound like >> [laughter] >> Well, I'm the teacher. You all are messing up what I'm about to Let's look at the historical background of xenophobia in South Africa. Now, according to Wits Waters and Universities Xenophobia Watch, xenophobic attack resulted in in 669 deaths. Now, this is from the records. About 5,310 looted shops and 127,572 displacements between 1994 and March 2024.

[00:02:33]And look at the span of time here. In May 2008, attacks took place in at at least 135 locations across the country. Now, this first of all is bordering around proximate causes of xenophobic attacks.

[00:02:49]So, we're giving you a little bit of a history to this matter before we bring it to where we are right about now. A significant proportion of both perpetrators and victims of xenophobic violence come from marginalized community. Now, you need to underline this word right about there because this is very important and is something we would dwell in on a little bit as we, you know, go on the conversation. This word right here, marginalized, communities.

[00:03:18]You would understand how this is actually fueling the theory and the psychology of xenophobic attacks in South Africa. All right. With attacks clustering in townships and informal settlements, inadequate housing and service provision combined with widespread unemployment, poverty, and crime in these communities, um, provide fertile grounds for vigilante violence against migrants. You see that?

[00:03:48]Now, I'll explain a bit more further.

[00:03:50]More there's, you know, elements in here. Now, watch this very, very important right about here now.

[00:03:59]Put Africa first became a key slogan in 2020.

[00:04:07]This emerged on Twitter during the early lockdown period. That of course in 2020, it was being used over 16,000 times in a single day. This was what we found out when we went into the research of the history of xenophobic attack in South Africa. In one single day, Put South Africans first was being used. Now, now, let's get back a little bit to the beginning.

[00:04:32]I tried to give you a breakdown of the categorization of xenophobic attack. We talked about the proximate and the precipitant. Now, that particular Put Africa first was um what is, you know, called the I know it sounds a little bit of a big English right there. You know, the the precipitant of xenophobic attacks in South Africa. Again, on the surface matter right here, I'll explain to you a little bit more further so you understand how all of that does really tie in right here. A public march to the Nigerian and Zimbabwean embassies demanded the deposition or deportation of their nationals. And then, another word was also used at the time, you know, according to the research we found out. And this one was 23 September Clean SA. Now, while I'm saying this, you could get on Twitter and just put this word this hashtags there and you would find the history of it as well as this one. We'll explain also what that really mean. And foreigners must go.

[00:05:39]This was another one. However, this foreigners was narrowed to just blacks, not any other one outside of blacks, although the tags that foreigners must go. Now, by 2021, this movement had become a vigilante movement and metamorphosed into a political party called Operation Dudula.

[00:06:00]Right? Which means pushback.

[00:06:04]This is in uh you know, Zulu language.

[00:06:07]And then it was formed in Soweto in June 16 in this same year, 2021.

[00:06:17]What we found that also was I I you know, when we did the research, we saw the categorization of you know, xenophobic attacks in in the country.

[00:06:27]And what we found that was a a layered mathematics of this. We saw that it happened during the post-apartheid era, you know, in the country. Of course, this was around 1994 after the curtains was broken down and freedom was brought in on board.

[00:06:42]After that time, we saw another kind of xenophobic attack that happened. This was specifically during the COVID-19 era.

[00:06:49]The second or the third categorization we saw here was anti- immigrant movement that happened online.

[00:06:56]That was the 23 September Clean SA I showed you a bit earlier, right? And then in 2024, we saw another one which was termed as 2024 elections and party political xenophobia. But again, in all of this, we don't know where AU has been on the matter. We'll get there. So, the elements that have, you know, happened in all of these four, you will see hate crimes, you see self-defined um local communities um criminal opportunism and violent attack.

[00:07:31]Now, why this was really important at the end of the day that we bring this out so we can see, especially this self-defined, is that we are South Africans. And so, if you are not South African, you don't have the right to benefit from the state as we, the indigenous natives of South Africans. However, again, this dichotomy was just for blacks, not for whites. And then we talked about that, it only took place mostly in local communities. Now, you have to understand why this is really so. I mentioned earlier about marginalized communities in the sense that they, which is then the theory and the psychology that has fueled xenophobic attack in the country for all of this while, they feel that the government have marginalized them when it comes to education, infrastructure, you know, civilization and development and the likes and even employment. They feel like the government has marginalized them all these years. And so, a lot of government presence has not been heavy in the local communities in South Africa. So, how then do they vent their anger somewhat? How How do they, you know, get government's attention to what is happening in the area? Now, on the other side of their watch, they find other Africans who come into South Africa in the same locality doing well.

[00:08:47]So, by way of, you know, that they have shops, they have businesses in the area.

[00:08:51]They're doing petty menial jobs and they're getting employed by white-owned companies, you know, and receiving, should I use the word menial salaries?

[00:08:59]They're excited and happy to do that.

[00:09:01]And the other guys now who are, you know, indigenous and natives of the place are not really willing to get the kind of jobs other African immigrants are getting to get the kind of pays they're also getting as well.

[00:09:15]And at the same time, they are not, you know, business-savvy as the case may be in now opening, you know, shops and so on and forth. And so, with all of that going on in the local communities now, the people began to be angry. And so, in a way of venting their anger, they took out on other African immigrants.

[00:09:38]In a way to get government's attention into the area. Now, with this also we would break down the economics of that matter when we get to that point. That of course served as an opportunistic situation for them to carry out these hate crimes alongside expressed by violent attack, which will explain in the next that as we go. You see the dimensions of this hate and violence. Now, this is always a perceived wealth in hands of foreigners.

[00:10:12]Again, this foreigners is blacks, not whites. But when we get to the economics of the conversation around xenophobia, you will see is the wealth really in the hands of blacks or whites in South Africa? We'll get there. Of course, they talked about economic pressure as well.

[00:10:31]And then um unemployment and then poverty and increased crime.

[00:10:37]Now, increased crime, they are accusing other Africans as being the ones who brought crime into the country. Now, how that is really so, statistics according to their own platform have not been able to prove that as the case may be. But according to Malema, one of you know, the activist leaders in South Africa, he has said that anybody who is caught in crime, whether you are South African or a non-South African, the laws are on ground to get you tried.

[00:11:11]You should pay for your crimes if you're found in one. It You don't need to organize a kind of movement that says that these people are the ones who are doing this. No. And then the matter of poverty also comes in on board again, you know, as part of the reason for that. Who is making who poor in South Africa? A question South Africans need to sit down really and ask themselves.

[00:11:35]And again, of course, economic pressure and perceived wealth in the hands of foreigners.

[00:11:41]Now, let's talk the economics.

[00:11:43]Watch this. Based on the 2022 census and 2025 estimates from Statistics South Africa, white people constitute approximately 7.1% to 7.3% of South Africa's population.

[00:12:01]Now, this represents around 4.5 around 4.5 million white Africans. Now, that broken down to 7.1 to 7.3%. This is very important. I'd like you to please note that as we move on on this.

[00:12:18]The total population, according to the 2025 statistics, stands at about 63 million.

[00:12:26]So, if the total population is 63 million and the whites represent about 4.5 million, do the math of what is left. So, we try to then break all of that down into the categorization of the various groups in South Africa. Black Africans represent around 81 to 82% of the population. The colored represents about 8.2% and whites represent about 7.3%.

[00:12:57]But also Asian and Indians represent about 2.7% of the population in South Africa. Now, this is very important because this will help us understand the theory and the psychology of economy that makes up the mix of xenophobic attacks in the country. And this is the key right here.

[00:13:20]We looked at the private sector and the corporate management sector of South Africa. Now, this is the top jobs, not not not what happens in the rural communities. This is the top jobs in Cape Town and Joburg, which of course with branches around the place as the case may be, depending on the kind of business. Major enterprises, black economic ownership, sits at around 39%.

[00:13:46]With the remaining majority shareholding, trusts, corporate entities in the hands of white South Africans, this is at a whopping 61%. Now, watch this.

[00:13:59]This is major shareholding owned by minority number. Remember what I showed you a bit earlier? That's around 4.5 million, which represent about 7.1 to 7.3% of the population. They hold 61% of the major private sector shares of the country.

[00:14:22]Meanwhile, the major or the majority of the population, which is of course South Africans, which represent about 81 to 82% population, sits at around 39. So, minor ownership of businesses, the the big things, in the hands of, you know, 39% in the hands of the people who are more in number. Meanwhile, major ownership in the hands of the people who are less, you know, in the country. If you wanted to carry out a xenophobic attack, you have the answer.

[00:14:59]We also looked at the corporate management. White South African holds approximately, watch this now, 66% of top management positions in the private sector. There was really no specific data to show for the blacks.

[00:15:16]And so, if you look at this arrangement, you will find that the whites, Africans, hold more of the corporate entities in South Africa by way of the businesses. And and and we're talking about the top guns.

[00:15:31]We're talking about the the big, you know, named companies and businesses and assets in the country. Not necessarily shops, traders, you know, roadside sellers. No, no, no. They were not factored into this economy because after all, those ones are in, especially the rural communities, the major town would drive the economy is controlled by white Africans.

[00:15:52]So, when we then see this xenophobic attacks happen, we can't really show some of those videos because it's actually gruesome. You see, it happens in schools, in hospitals, shop owners, you know, traders, dispatch riders, employed Africans in foreign-owned companies, looting of black-owned stores. Now, if you look at all of this, these are what would be termed, you know, under microeconomics.

[00:16:16]You know, just menial jobs, as the case may be, in South Africa. This is not the weight of this number I showed you earlier. And it is also not the weight of uh uh wait wait wait wait wait of this number also I showed you earlier. No, it's not that. This is This represent major, major. This is minor, as the case may be. And so, when you find South Africans attacking black-owned businesses, you need to understand that that is resident in the local communities, not in the urban area.

[00:16:55]In all of this, let's now talk about the government.

[00:16:58]>> [laughter] >> You know, because we've we've talked about the history, we've talked about the psychology, and the understanding of xenophobia. Where is the government in all of this conversation?

[00:17:10]Every xenophobic incident is an indictment and referendum on the government, particularly when citizens relegate agencies of government and turn the society to a lawless sin. And so, we had to categorize some of the things that the government have done thus far, maybe to try to help, but we saw a slow response to it. We saw a weak response to it as well.

[00:17:36]We also saw a powerless response, and we'll explain a little bit why. We saw a response that can be termed always reactive. And then, no one is ever held accountable. This is very important. Why do we say powerless, which can cup slow and weak? It's because at the end of the day, it sums up that nobody nobody and if you remember the numbers I showed you when we began, the statistics that came up that that's according to Georgetown University. Between 1994 and 2024, the number of deaths, looted shops, and displaced persons, some who have had to be put back especially to Nigeria as the case may be. However, with all of those incident, you can't really tell anyone who has been jailed or held accountable to the incident. And so, when the government comes up with reactive statements, can that really bring an end to xenophobic attacks in South Africa if an incident has happened since post-apartheid 1994 up until 2026?

[00:18:42]The government needs to really step up and do better. Which then brings us to the hard question, and this is really important. Do we want peace and unity, not just in South Africa as the case may be, but in Africa as a whole, which is where the African Union needs to come in and bring some answers. Are South Africans ready for the job they claim to be fighting for? Remember I talked to you about the, you know, mega jobs in the local communities.

[00:19:11]Why are Africans the only target?

[00:19:15]Meanwhile, according to that economic matter I showed you, you saw the divisions across, you know, nationalities and and color lines.

[00:19:24]Meanwhile, black Africans are the only ones South Africans are targeting in their xenophobic attacks.

[00:19:33]Now, is this really fear for blacks or a strategy for new colonialism? We'll explain a bit earlier because this is also part of the theory and the psychology fueling xenophobic attacks. Who is really behind this? Now, which then takes me to the matter of the way forward. After we've understood all of this, what then does this mean? We need to see speedy democratic development and civilization of African countries. This is obviously not just about South Africa now, as the case may be, but African nations, whilst you may not be able to stop movement of Africans from one country to another country, we want to see a situation where each African state has all it takes for total self-survival, whether in education, in infrastructure, in transport, in health, technology, agriculture, and the likes.

[00:20:33]Each African and we are endowed with all it takes to hit that mark. We need to see that. Now, capacity building among citizens on entrepreneurship, which is part of what is happening in the local communities where we are seeing these xenophobic attacks. Um some of them are ill-educated.

[00:20:54]And that's really important to understand. And so, when you are idle, remember an idle man, yeah, you can complete that. So, this is really very important. Now, we also would like to see strengthened institutions like education, health, intentionally make laws that favor businesses and job creations so that South Africans themselves, especially of the of the low-income cadre and so on and so forth, can have access to bring to about, you know, the reality of their dreams and plans when it comes to business as the case may be and then of course enforcement of both AU and ECOWAS charter among member states.

[00:21:34]Because of course, one of that very simple line is peace and unity amongst all member states. We need to see that being enforced as the case may be. Now, let's get to the conclusion of the matter.

[00:21:50]The violence of xenophobia has consequences and implications that extend far beyond the targeted groups.

[00:21:57]Can South Africans agree on a five-year no violence window, then concentrate on improving their capacity to function in a dynamic economic environment and see if that weak excuse of they are taking our jobs will still be tenable?

[00:22:13]South African businesses function in other countries including Nigeria and no one has monopoly of any kind of behavior.

[00:22:21]But first, let's give peace a chance. My name is Nelson Etuk and you just watched The Explainer.

[00:23:14]>> Hey.