Maravi

(HERALD) Diaspora: No bed of roses

Diaspora: No bed of roses
By Edmore Zvinonzwa

"YOU remember that friend of mine Sipho, the one who caused that explosion during the Physics class way back in ’99. Sha-a she called last night. You know what she was telling me? She says life is very nice out there in Port Elizabeth and she is enjoying every minute of it. Hanzi unotomuka wofunga kuti ndodya chii because zvese zviripo. (There are a many different types of food to choose from.) Ice-cream or something else." This is part of a conversation this writer overheard on board a city-bound ramshackle that was travelling into Harare city from Zengeza.

I had virtually thrown myself out of my blankets that morning, took what I thought was closest to a bath on such a cold morning and flew into Dendera Way, past the deserted mukina tree — paanaMuseyamwa pabhutsu — towards the bus stop.

I had not been so lucky on that particular morning as the newspaper delivery van that I normally relied on for free transport was nowhere to be seen. Given this scenario, I had to join the rest of the group across the road in the daily morning stampede to get onto the first bus. The $50 million difference in fare between the big buses and that for the smaller kombis was something I could not afford to ignore.

The three girls who stood besides me on the aisle were clad in a familiar private city college uniform. Their conversation could not have escaped any caring listener’s ear because the volume was deliberately high and the attitude very patronising and there was an air of being privileged to know somebody in the Diaspora. Given the ages of the ladies, I felt I could forgive them for their ideas on the Diaspora.

They seemed to idolise it so much. Little did they know that there is no place like home.

According to Wikipedia, the word Diaspora is derived from Ancient Greek — "a scatterring or sowing of seeds", and refers to "the forcing of any people or ethnic population to leave their traditional homelands, the dispersal of such people, and the ensuing developments in their culture".

The news that I came across on getting to the office in town was shocking. Over twelve foreigners, including Mozambicans, Zimbabweans and Malawians had been shot, beaten, or burnt to death in neighbouring South Africa in attacks which have been described as xenophobic.

A multiplicity of versions have flown in from different angles. Different countries whose citizens had been caught up in these attacks came up with variant responses. Mozambique sent buses to move their people out of this hell, while the Zimbabwean Ambassador to South Africa called on all his countrymen to consult the embassy for assistance. Most of the immigrants, however, first sought refuge in police stations and churches, which were also attacked for siding with them. Very sad scenes were repeated on television and one of the most brutal actions of man against man was captured by AFP and reproduced as a front-page picture in the Monday edition of this paper. A man burning after being set alight by fellow human beings. Obviously they had one intention — to kill him outright.

These immigrants who are being butchered, supposedly for taking away scarce jobs and alleged criminal acts, are human beings and everything else follows. Over forty foreign nationals have been killed in these said xenophobic conflicts which have now spread to far-off places like Cape Town and Durban. To make matters worse, they are being carried out by Africans who are abusing the freedom they got in 1994 after hibernating in the very countries whose citizens they are butchering. What could have become of South Africa had Mozambique not sacrificed to host liberation fighters who were fighting the apartheid regime in that country? South Africa actually ended up sponsoring the rebel Renamo movement to ensure Mozambique had enough problems at home to play host to those seeking refuge.

It was precisely for supporting the liberation movement in South Africa that former Mozambican president Samora Machel was killed on October 19, 1986 while returning from a Front Line summit in Lusaka, Zambia. Zimbabwe also suffered countless South African threats and attacks, including the one on an apartment on Prince Edward Road that killed Tsitsi Chiliza who was married to a South African national living in Zimbabwe at that time. Against this background one is tempted to think South Africans are very quick to forget as a people. Even then, would killing or violence against their neighbours solve their concerns.

South African police may have acted a bit slower than expected given the gravity of the situation and the army could have been called in much earlier but this remains a short-term solution. Of course, it was necessary to douse the flames before they spread further. However, there is need for a long-term solution to these atrocities, which are likely to be the worst of their nature the continent has experienced in recent years. A number of theories may have been advanced pertaining to the possible sources of the problem but in this era and age, should African brothers and sisters be butchering each other for the sole reason that they originate from a foreign country? And if the affected countries choose the path of retribution what kind of chaos will Africa fall into?

The continent is commemorating Africa Day on Monday, May 25. What picture do South Africans want the rest of Africa and the world to have of them ahead of the AU summit?

This writer feels African leaders will emerge from the summit with more questions than answers. South Africa is looking forward to staging the 2010 soccer World Cup where they will play host to millions of foreigners. Are they not risking losing the right to host this soccer showcase by acts that can only find equivalents in the pre-Stone Age era?

South Africa must have been supportive of their neighbours who are coming to their country in search of a better livelihood. After all, reports say a lot of them are hardworking and are involved in the construction of stadiums that will be venues during the 2010 World Cup finals. Some are skilled professionals whose contribution to the South African economy has more positives than negatives. All these people are actually saying that they are in the Diaspora. It is not by design.

This writer remembers that Mozambicans used to find sanctuary in Zimbabwe after fleeing from Renamo atrocities back home. Zimbabweans didn’t kill them. Or were they supposed to?

This writer does not believe so.

Great fathers of the nationalist drive on the continent and pan-Africanists like Kwame Nkrumah, Mwalimu Julius Nyerere among others must be turning in their graves when they see African brothers doing this to each other. Even people like Nelson Mandela must be shattered right now. No wonder why Winnie Mandela offered a passionate apology to the rest of Africa for the madness that has gripped the Rainbow Nation.

A human being remains human and setting him alight represents one of the most horrific pictures of this age, especially for a continent, which is still struggling to reassert itself and shake off Eurocentric perspectives of it as a continent inhabited by barbaric people.

Given the terror campaign in South Africa, would one doubt these versions? These are experiences that show that home is best. The Diaspora is no bag of roses.

You can buy a house but not home. People who leave for the Diaspora, or the majority of them are toiling. For the not-so-lucky, the occupations are ineffable, over and above the risk of being treated as subhuman.

Labels: DIASPORA

posted by MrK @ 8:52 PM