[Reader-list] Karima Brown on South African Pogroms

[radhikarajen at vsnl.net]

Hi, 

 democratic rule fortunately or unfortunately is by the people, for the people and not necessarily of the people as seen in free India or in South Africa, as some people tend to get elected by the people of their choice, not necessarily by ALL the people, with subtle methods of corruption, appeasement of castes and faiths, then the result is people get what they deserve. When as low as 45 percent of eligible voters refuse to participate in vote, another 12 percent voters are "kept out" of voters list by devious means such as voters list revision under governors rule as in Karnataka, moles in election commission who accept crores for the favours to be extended, are in seat, the whole tamasha of election becomes a gimmick of money and muscle power, one of the prime reasons for voters apathy.
  

       With the division in society on caste s such as upper caste, "other backward Castes" and lower castes with tags such as years of oppression on caste basis, it becomes the excellent play grounds for the elite with money, muscle and booze to sway the result in any which way they want with conniving item numbers going by the name of anchors/ journalists and spin doctors of media. Media is respected in democracy, but the anchors who play the role of spin doctors for political parties are subvertice forces/individuals in media who attract disgust and dismay from citizens as they are rewarded with awards, by the system like Padmashri and best journalist when in practise they are just page three celebs of the media, blacksheeps. !

Regards.

----- Original Message -----
From: Naeem Mohaiemen <naeem.mohaiemen at gmail.com>
Date: Tuesday, May 20, 2008 5:51 pm
Subject: [Reader-list] Karima Brown on South African Pogroms
To: reader-list at sarai.net

> I remember meeting Mbeki for a minute at a 1994 Joburg event. Somebody
> whispered to me, "this will be the next president." I thiught he was
> nothing like Mandela. Later I was reminded that my entire generation
> had an over-the-top hero worship of M. Artists Against Sun City was
> the first global political boycott I supported. The first time I kept
> a list of the "bad artists". The ones who broke the boycott.
> Necklacing was the first time we suppressed the excesses of liberation
> movements (well there were numerous other examples, I just wasn't old
> enough to comprehend). Live footage of Mandela walking out of the
> prison, watched in a college dormitory, was, well it was history, no,
> and I wasn't expecting to be witness to any of that (later that same
> live TV in Ohio gave us the LA riots and Clarence Thomas hearings).
> 
> With all that burden of history, Mbeki was always going to be unfairly
> compared. African analysts assured us all that Mbeki would be 
> fine, he
> would rise to the ocassion, wouldn't he? You didn't need a Mandela at
> every moment in history. And it's true you don't. But an incompetent,
> venal, slippery politician is a steep fall from those levels.
> 
> Karima Brown's comment today, where she argues that "Mbeki's
> government has become so adept at obfuscation that setting up
> commissions, panels and conducting audits in the face of any crisis
> seems like a national pastime." reminds that some fears were
> justified.
> 
> - Naeem
> 
> Fiery Death in South Africa
> http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-fg-rampage20-
> 2008may20,0,4906166.story
> South Africa: Pogroms Expose Citizens' Ugly Insularity
> http://allafrica.com/stories/200805200122.html
> Karima Brown
> Johannesburg
> 
> WHILE it is well and good to blame the government for not having
> proper policies in place to deal with SA's refugee crisis, the
> violence against foreign Africans is a reflection of something far
> uglier.
> 
> Granted, the government has consistently displayed a tin ear when it
> comes to the sheer scale of our refugee crisis, especially since the
> economic and political meltdown in Zimbabwe in recent years . The lack
> of leadership from the government in recent weeks is also not helping.
> This leadership vacuum comes from the top. After a week of violence
> that left several people dead, all President Thabo Mbeki could mutter
> at the weekend was that the police must act firmly and arrest the
> culprits and that a panel would be set up to look at the underlying
> causes of the violence.
> 
> When in doubt, appoint a panel. Mbeki's government has become so adept
> at obfuscation that setting up commissions, panels and conducting
> audits in the face of any crisis seems like a national pastime. The
> police's conduct also leaves much to be desired. Apart from promising
> to retaliate with live ammunition should they be fired at, the South
> African Police Service has done very little to get to the bottom of
> how marauding groups of armed men can go from place to place and
> attack whoever they deem to be foreigners.
> 
> It is also common knowledge that the police are not free of the
> xenophobia that is so present in communities. Police harassment of
> foreign Africans in places such as Hillbrow, Yeoville and other 
> inner-
> city communities is well known.
> 
> But what the recent pogroms in Gauteng townships point to is not just
> state failure. South African society as a whole stands condemned. The
> violence exposes shortcomings in our society at a moral, social and
> political level. Considering the solidarity shown during our struggle
> against apartheid by our neighbours in the frontline states, the
> killing of foreign Africans in a so-called liberated SA is
> particularly appalling. Not only did many on the continent endure
> military attacks, they also provided shelter, food and even employment
> to thousands of exiles when they needed it most. Now that it is our
> turn to provide sanctuary and solidarity, we repay our neighbours with
> murder and rape.
> 
> While it is true that there is a scramble for resources in poor
> communities that is often exploited by local strongmen for political
> gain, it does not provide all the answers to the senseless violence
> and the finger-pointing at foreigners. These communities have always
> been badly off, yet we have not seen the level of violence of recent
> weeks.
> 
> Moreover, the silence from community organisations such as civic
> structures, local churches and other grassroots bodies in the wake of
> the attacks is simply deafening. This silence points either to
> acquiescence on the part of local leaders or a complete demobilisation
> on the part of community organisations that formed the backbone of
> resistance during the struggle years. Whatever the reasons, it points
> to a dangerous vacuum that has already been exploited with deadly
> consequences.
> 
> Apart from the Central Methodist Church in Johannesburg, which 
> plays a
> vital role in providing sanctuary to vulnerable refugees, why are our
> spiritual leaders not responding to the cries of the victims of the
> recent violence with more vigour? As vulnerable women and children
> flee their homes, where is the moral leadership of the country?
> 
> Since the outbreak of attacks in Alexandra, the African National
> Congress leadership has spoken out, but it is simply not enough,
> especially if one considers that the violence is spreading and could
> soon engulf the province. Is it not ironic that most, if not all, of
> the victims happen to be fellow Africans? This cruel reality blows out
> of the water any notions of pan-Africanism, never mind the African
> renaissance so often spoken of by Mbeki and other politicians. Clearly
> our isolation during apartheid did not only trap whites in an
> unsustainable bubble, it also insulated the majority from the world
> including, importantly, our neighbours in the region.
> 
> Brown is political editor.
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