Zambia is a peaceful nation. Zambia is a
Christian nation. Zambians are the most friendly people in the world. These
statements are what we have constantly told ourselves, sadly, this last week
has caused an earth shattering dent into those statements. It has brought into
question many of the things we pride ourselves in. The xenophobic attacks on
foreigners in the compounds this week may have brought to the surface some of
the hidden resentments towards foreigners that exists in our communities.
The looting and destruction of the
foreign particularly Rwandese owned shops in compounds such as Garden,
Zingalume, Chaisa and others was done under the pretext of retaliation. In the
midst of the recent ritual killings many have found it easy to blame it on
foreigners. After all no Zambian can be so heartless as to slash someone open
to get their organs. So we think. It is also difficult to fathom how Rwandese
in the current economic situation can have flourishing groceries while Zambian
ones are struggling. Some people in the compounds believe that it must be as a
result of some witchcraft which involves private parts, hearts, eyes and
livers.
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| Freezer looted for Rwandese shop |
Last year, we spat in disgust when
South Africa was experiencing xenophobic attacks against Mozambicans,
Nigerians, Zimbabweans and other Africans. We scolded them for their un-Africaness. Today, we have been hit
in the face by the same attacks we condemned. We as a nation must not cheat
ourselves that this resentment towards foreigners success in this country is
something new. We lie to ourselves that we hold hands and sing kumbaya with all people who are not
Zambian. Yet how many times have we heard statements such as "These
Chinese, these Congolese, these Zimbabweans...." Sadly, some of this tone
in the message has come from some politicians who are looking for scapegoats to
their inability to function as leaders.
The danger lies when blanket
statements of a certain nationality or even group of people are made as the
cause of our pain, poverty, hunger and suffering. Every time that feeling
arises we associate it with that specific group of people even if they may have
nothing to do with it whatsoever. The
mob mentality that was exhibited in the compounds did not just arise in
a day. This may have been tensions that have been brewing for months and
possibly years that were never addressed.
The level of comprehension is quite
worrying too. Are these communities saying that they only reason the Rwandese
shops are flourishing is because of witchcraft? Would they have felt
differently if the Rwandese shops were struggling? Having spent a year in a
foreign country I got to understand that immigrants tend to work harder than
nationals. This is because they do not have the full benefits that citizens
get. Therefore, they have no other option but to work and toil for their
businesses to ensure that they succeed. They do not have the entitlement that
citizens get. We have seen how countries in Europe and America are attempting
to make it much more difficult for people to migrate there my cutting down
their benefits.
I am not blind to the fact that there
are some foreigners who are involved in criminal activities in this country.
But we cannot allow ourselves to persecute all foreigners on the basis of a few
who have been caught on the wrong end of the law. Further, we can no longer
hide behind the curtain of Zambia being a peaceful and Christian nation if we
do not make any efforts in making it that way. Our leaders, political, social
and cultural have a strong role to play in encouraging dialogue and the
co-existence of all people regardless of nationality, race, or tribe. Finally,
can people get off their behinds and get to work, others are successful because
maybe they have made a decision to work hard.
