A Literature Review of Xenophobic Attacks in South Africa

Brett Holberg Xenophobic Attacks in South Africa Attacks on foreigners in South Africa have been on the rise since the transfer of power to the ANC in 1994. These violent outbursts, which have resulted in riots and dozens of murders, have been described as xenophobic in nature. After the months of summer 2008 in South Africa where there was a sudden wave of anti-immigrant violence, scholars are asking what is the driving force behind these attacks. Scholars see continuity in the ideology behind these xenophobic attacks occurring in South Africa. In his article, ‘Fortress SA’: Xenophobic Violence in South Africa, John Sharp writes about the causes of the violence and the Human Sciences Research Council’s response on the matter. He†¦show more content†¦South Africans allow their national issues to be represented by foreigners who they feel brought them upon them. Adejunmobi makes and interesting case by identifying South Africa’s xenophobic violence with the trend of anti-alien violence in Africa in the past 20 years and by doing this opens up a continent wide discourse about what he calls the â€Å"ethics of locality† (Adejunmobi 2009). Even in examining different phenomena continent wide he is able to come to a conclusion, which supports a congruent ideology for the attacks, and puts them in a larger perspective. In his article in Third World Quarterly, David Mario Matsinhe, Africa’s Fear of Itself: the ideology of Makwerekwere in South Africa, he uses the term makwerekwere to represent South Africans uneasiness with outsiders. The phrase originates out of the fact that word makwerekwere sounds very distinctly un-South African. Makwerekwere is so distinct for South Africans because it shares no similarities with any South African words (Mario Matsinhe 2011). He writes â€Å"Since the collapse of apartheid, the phantom of Makwerekwere has been constructed and deployed in and through public discourse to render Africans from ou tside the borders orderable as the nation’s bogeyman.† (Mario Matsinhe 2011). He provides a great argument and uses a variety of sources including human rights network publications. HeShow MoreRelatedNew World Order in Conspiracy Theory13987 Words   |  56 Pages10  Brave New World * 3  Postulated implementations * 3.1  Gradualism * 3.2  Coup dà ©tat * 3.3  Mass surveillance * 3.4  Occultism * 3.5  Population control * 3.6  Mind control * 4  Alleged conspirators * 5  Criticism * 6  Literature * 7  In popular culture * 8  References | ------------------------------------------------- History of the term During the 20th century, many  statesmen, such as  Woodrow Wilson  and  Winston Churchill, used the term new world order to refer to