In South Africa, a gang rape, committed last week against eight women during the filming of a clip near an abandoned mine in the suburbs of Johannesburg, stirs up anger. The question of illegal migrants is again at the heart of the debates, while xenophobic movements regularly shake the country
With our correspondent in Johannesburg, Claire Bargeles
A small crowd gathered in front of the court where appear sixty people arrested following this tragedy. The police accuse the “zama zama”, the nickname given to illegal minors, often from neighboring countries, of being the perpetrators of the crime. The security forces have since arrested more than a hundred people belonging to these communities, for various reasons, without any of them being directly linked to this rape. Shock and anger quickly shifted the debate on violence against women to the issue of illegal migrants.
Each party faces each other, from the ANC to the DA through smaller parties. For Mantshadi Teleko, of the Fighters for Economic Freedom (EFF), it is about supporting women’s rights: Women are not safe here. We are even afraid to go to the supermarket downstairs in the evening! And I think men in this country have to learn how to behave. »
But placards do not hesitate to make the link with the foreign nationality of those arrested. ” There is a problem of illegal immigrants, asserts Pule Mabe, spokesperson for the ANC. We have established that our government must strengthen laws and controls, so that we can solve the problem of undocumented migrants who commit horrible crimes. »
Lizette Lancaster, a researcher at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS), is not surprised by such speeches: “ The subject of crime and violence in South Africa is extremely sensitive. We have often seen ministers and political representatives blame immigrants. But the data suggests that crime is less related to the issue of immigration, and more to the government’s failure to put strategic plans in place. »
The opposition parties are also calling for the resignation of the Minister of Police, whom they consider incompetent.