In South Africa, immigrants are sometimes scapegoated as the foundation of socio-economic issues. In the post-apartheid panorama, Black African immigrants, primarily, from different African international locations have been negatively stereotyped as “illegal” and “job stealers” who’re “criminal” in addition to “diseased”.
This attitudinal orientation of hostility in opposition to non-nationals in a given inhabitants is xenophobia.
Since 1994, greater than 900 violent xenophobic incidents have been recorded in South Africa, ensuing in a minimum of 630 deaths, displacement of 123,700 folks, and looting of about 4,850 outlets. The eruption of xenophobic violence undermines social stability and cohesion, tolerance, the structure of South Africa, and the social cloth on which the nation’s democracy is based.
Misstatements by public officers and politicians have repeatedly fanned the flames of xenophobia and violence related to it. United Nations consultants recently warned that “the country is on the precipice of explosive violence”.
Almost three a long time after the county’s first democratic election, South Africa faces what commentators have dubbed the triple problem of poverty, unemployment and inequality.
More than half of the nation’s inhabitants lives in poverty, with close to 12 million people hungry and 2.5 million experiencing hunger daily. The nation has a Gini coefficient of 0.65, making it some of the unequal international locations in the world.
A meagre 10% of the inhabitants owns greater than 80% of the wealth. South Africa continues to be “a country of two nations”, as former president Thabo Mbeki once described it.
Youth unemployment is a huge problem. Of the greater than 10 million folks aged 15-24 years, solely 2.5 million are energetic in the labour pressure, both working or looking for work. Over 75% of this group is out of the labour pressure.
The significance of unfavourable stereotyping and scapegoating in relation to the “triple challenge” is that immigrants are portrayed because the trigger and a risk to nationwide sovereignty. Inflammatory remarks about migrants by public officers and politicians harden mythologies.
In a latest research paper we got down to debunk unfavourable immigrant myths. We supplied proof demonstrating the affect of myths on the citizenry’s perceptions, in addition to contradictions.
The analysis drew from authoritative and credible sources of information and data.
Beyond debunking the myths, this analysis units a baseline of what details exist relating to immigrants in South Africa.
Myth 1: South Africa is swamped with immigrants
It is broadly believed that the nation is flooded with immigrants. The 2021 South African Social Attitudes Survey signifies that just about half the pattern believed the nation had between 17-40 million immigrants. This perception is inaccurate. Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) estimates the quantity to be about 3.95 million, accounting for six.5% of the nation’s inhabitants. This will not be distinctive to South Africa.
This determine consists of common and irregular immigrants
Myth 2: Immigrants steal jobs and employment alternatives from locals
While there’s anecdotal proof that migrants are “job stealers”, in basic, migrants don’t seem to take employment alternatives from locals. In South Africa, “one {regular} immigrant worker generates approximately two jobs for locals.”.
Migrants are additionally extra prone to be self-employed and make use of South Africans.
Myth 3: Immigrants contribute to, or are liable for, excessive ranges of crime
Our report cites 2008 South African Social Attitudes Survey knowledge which confirmed that 62% of the pattern believed that immigrants have been liable for crime in the nation. By 2016 it had gone as much as 66% . Paradoxically, when requested who commits crime in their communities, most individuals say it’s locals. For instance, between 2011 and 2017, the nationwide Victims of Crime surveys confirmed that 5.7%–6.7% of households acknowledged that crime in their areas was brought on by “people from outside South Africa”.
Statistically, there is no relationship between international migration in South Africa and crime. There isn’t any proof that the majority foreign-born nationals commit crime, or that they’re liable for most crime in the nation.
Myth 4: Most immigrants are in the nation illegally
Often, immigrants enter South Africa with a daily standing however fall into irregular standing resulting from poor immigration coverage administration. The Department of Home Affairs is struggling with a visa backlog partly resulting from departmental dysfunction and corruption. In addition to the division’s backlogs, the price of making use of for visas is exorbitant.
Myth 5: Migrants are flooding public healthcare companies
The Limpopo well being MEC, Dr Phophi Ramathuba, just lately got here underneath the highlight for berating an immigrant girl. The second was caught on video which then went viral. Her remarks appeared to reinforce the myth that immigrants are overburdening the nation’s public healthcare system. At about 6.5% of the inhabitants, it’s statistically unattainable for immigrants to be liable for the nationwide healthcare system’s failings.
Futility in scapegoating
Scapegoating immigrants won’t outcome in considerably improved healthcare service provision, lowered crime or much less unemployment.
The analysis was carried out by Anthony Kaziboni and three colleagues from the Institute for Security Studies: Lizette Lancaster, Thato Machabaphala and Godfrey Mulaudzi.
Anthony Kaziboni, head of Research, Institute for the Future of Knowledge (IFK), University of Johannesburg
This article is republished from The Conversation underneath a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
