The Japan Times - Five things to know about South Africa's anti-migrant protests

Waves of xenophobic violence, including in 2008 when dozens were killed, reflect deeper structural problems in Africa's most industrialised nation, analysts say.

Here are five things to know about the latest unrest, which has drawn criticism from several African nations.

- What sparked the new wave? -

Mostly low-key demonstrations against migrants have been building for months after a flare-up late last year when undocumented foreign nationals were blocked from accessing clinics and hospitals.

It reflects growing public anger over issues such as soaring joblessness, crime and pressure on resources, with a steady influx of mostly African migrants becoming a convenient scapegoat, analysts say.

Some political forces also appear to be using the tensions to garner support ahead of municipal elections in November.

South Africa is under pressure from global shocks and domestic policy failures, said William Gumede, professor of public management at the University of the Witwatersrand.

"We are going into a very difficult period," he said, pointing to "self-inflicted toxic policies" by government and its failure to reverse economic decline.

There are roughly three million immigrants in the country, about 5.1 percent of the population, according to the national statistics agency.

More than 63 percent come from neighbouring countries in the 16-member Southern African Development Community (SADC) bloc that are facing their own economic crises and political instability.

With South Africa's unemployment rate of nearly 33 percent -- significantly higher when discouraged job seekers are included -- there is particular resentment towards working migrants.

- Who is behind the protests? -

Protesters have been whipped into action by a loose coalition of political parties and citizen-led xenophobic vigilante movements, some fronted by men in traditional Zulu dress.

Their charges that migrants are behind crime and taking jobs from locals inflame tensions in townships strained by poverty, unemployment and weak policing.

A virulent social media campaign that includes disinformation debunked by AFP contributes to the spread of anti-migrant sentiment.

"The main ingredient is right-wing political opportunism," political scientist Sandile Swana told AFP, warning it risks redirecting anger from structural failures.

"We are seeing a new form of black-on-black violence diverting attention from the true culprits of the economic crisis," he said.

- Why does xenophobia keep resurfacing? -

South Africa has experienced repeated waves of xenophobic violence over the past two decades.

In 2008, 62 people were killed in anti-immigrant riots and thousands displaced. Further outbreaks followed in 2015 and 2016.

Violence in 2019 saw armed mobs descend on foreign-owned businesses around Johannesburg, leaving at least 12 people dead -- 10 of them South African citizens.

Critics say weak law enforcement and limited prosecutions have entrenched a culture of impunity, allowing vigilante action to persist alongside anti-immigrant rhetoric.

"There is no law enforcement against illegal, unlawful vigilantism and afrophobia in South Africa, no prosecution at all," Swana said.

What sets the current wave apart is the growing acceptance of xenophobic rhetoric beyond fringe groups, Gumede said.

"That wasn't the case in the past, which is really a flashpoint," he said.

- How has the world reacted? -

Several African countries -- including Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Lesotho and Zimbabwe -- have urged their citizens in South Africa to exercise caution.

Ghana has formally petitioned the African Union and initiated efforts to repatriate nationals.

The United Nations said it was "deeply concerned" while Human Rights Watch criticised a lack of adequate response from the authorities.

South Africa's government has meanwhile rejected accusations of xenophobia and urged other African nations to address the economic and governance crises driving migration.

- What comes next? -

While the bloodshed in this wave of anti-migrant action has been nothing compared to previous years, an order by vigilante groups for undocumented migrants to leave by June 30 is raising fears even though it has not legal weight.

Demonstrations have been announced in the lead-up, with groups also forcing small businesses run by foreign nationals to close.

South Africa's international standing has meanwhile been dented, undermining its post-apartheid image as a champion of human rights and African solidarity.

The government had "positioned South Africa as a moral authority but that is now heavily destroyed," Gumede said.

The violence "opened an angle that will probably be exploited later by people such as Donald Trump that we are a genocidal nation," he said, referring to a debunked claim that the white Afrikaner minority is systematically persecuted in South Africa.

S.Yamamoto--JT