...

Ramaphosa says South Africa must quell attacks on foreigners as summit starts

Other News Materials 4 September 2019 16:44 (UTC +04:00)
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa told officials and business leaders on Wednesday that he was committed to quelling attacks on foreigners that have threatened to cast a cloud over an economic forum aimed at boosting intra-African trade
Ramaphosa says South Africa must quell attacks on foreigners as summit starts

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa told officials and business leaders on Wednesday that he was committed to quelling attacks on foreigners that have threatened to cast a cloud over an economic forum aimed at boosting intra-African trade, reports Trend referring to Reuters.

Police have arrested dozens of people and confirmed several deaths after riots in Johannesburg and the capital Pretoria in recent days, when roving groups attacked shops mainly owned by migrants from the rest of Africa.

It is unclear what ignited the latest round of violence, but analysts say contributing factors include high unemployment and frustration with limited economic opportunities.

The wave of unrest has kindled memories of previous deadly attacks on foreigners and strained diplomatic relations with Africa’s other economic powerhouse Nigeria.

South African businesses MTN and Shoprite closed stores in Nigeria on Wednesday after their facilities in the country came under attack.

Other African countries from Ghana to Ethiopia and regional bloc the African Union have called on Ramaphosa to take decisive action. Artists and ordinary citizens from across the continent have taken to social media to voice their anger, with some threatening retaliation.

“Taking action against people from other nations is not justified and should never be allowed in our beautiful country. … We need to quell those incidents of unrest,” Ramaphosa told an event on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Africa three-day summit starting on Wednesday.

“South Africa must be a country where everyone feels safe, including women and foreign nationals,” Ramaphosa said, also condemning recent incidents where women had been killed.

Tags:
Latest

Latest