Xenophobic Attacks in South Africa Confirms that Pan-Africanism is a Fallacy!
In the first week of September 2019, riots and looting targeting shops owned by foreign nationals broke in South Africa’s Jeppestown and Johannesburg CBD. Around 50 businesses predominantly owned by Africans from the rest of the continent and especially Nigerians’ were reportedly destroyed or damaged during the incident. The mosque located in the Jozi Mall was attacked and copies of Quran were defiled, while every shop in the mall was looted. The riots coincided with a nation-wide truck driver strike protesting against the employment of non-South African truckers. It also coincided with the publication of a statement by Human Rights Watch that over 200 people (mostly foreign truck drivers) had been killed in South Africa since March 2018. During the riot, a number of cargo trucks were torched and foreign truck drivers assaulted in the province of KwaZulu-Natal.
The Xenophobic attacks are recurrent in nature such as in 1998, a Mozambican and two Senegalese citizens were thrown out of a speeding train and on 30 May 2013, Abdi Nasir Mahmoud, a Somali was stoned to death amongst numerous other barbaric and violent acts committed to foreigners in South Africa! To make matters worse South African leaders themselves are on the leading front such as South African Small Business Development Minister, Lindiwe Zulu who said that foreign business owners cannot co-exist peacefully with local business owners unless they share their trade secrets! [Daily Nation, 08/09/2019]
The reactions towards the xenophobic attacks and violence included, Nigeria withdrew from the World Economic Forum (WEF) gathering in Cape Town, Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) cancelled an international soccer match against South Africa that was to take place in Zambia, Botswana issued a travel advisory and warning to its citizens, Air Tanzania suspended flights to Johannesburg. On the other hand, South Africa temporarily closed its diplomatic missions in Nigeria following reprisal attacks by Nigerians that also targeted South African businesses operating in Nigeria such as MTN, Multichoice and Shoprite that suspended their operations temporarily!
The above description is exposing total failure of the secular capitalist ideology in uniting people under the banner of humanity and instead categorize them into despicable colonial boundary terms such as nationalism, racism and tribalism! Hence causing divisions and animosity between brothers and sisters, parents and their children and relatives! The latest evil examples include, on Wednesday, 26 June 2019, Charles Njagua Kanyi, a Kenyan MP in Starehe Constituency from the ruling Jubilee Party was arrested on charges of incitement to violence over his xenophobic utterances against foreigners (Tanzanians, Ugandans, Pakistanis and Chinese) operating businesses and dominating markets in Nairobi. Furthermore, the Saudi Arabia’s blockade to Qatar that severed ties including that of kinship between people of the two countries! Hence, every citizen views himself/herself through the nationality mirror! To make matters worse inside the national borders we have tribalism permeating the society! Since secular capitalist ideology is founded upon, the basis of separating religion from the life/government and its criterion of actions is based on interests and benefits; then the witnessing of xenophobia in South Africa, America, UK etc. is unsurprising!
Consequently, Islam on the other hand, forbids racism, tribalism and nationalism:
Allah (swt) says:
(يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ إِنَّا خَلَقْنَاكُمْ مِنْ ذَكَرٍ وَأُنثَى وَجَعَلْنَاكُمْ شُعُوبًا وَقَبَائِلَ لِتَعَارَفُوا إِنَّ أَكْرَمَكُمْ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ أَتْقَاكُمْ)
“O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribe that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you.” [Al-Hujurat: 13]
The Prophet (saw) says:
(مَنْ قَاتَلَ تَحْتَ رَايَةٍ عِمِّيَّةٍ يَدْعُو إِلَى عَصَبِيَّةٍ أَوْ يَغْضَبُ لِعَصَبِيَّةٍ فَقِتْلَتُهُ جَاهِلِيَّةٌ)
” Whoever fights under a banner of folly, supporting tribalism, or getting angry for the sake of tribalism, he dies in a state of ignorance.” [Al-Nasa’i and Ibn Majah]
It is only Islam and Islamic rule that has a proven track record of destroying sectarianism, racism and tribalism of uniting people of different backgrounds, ethnicity and beliefs into one Ummah under one State. The Aws and Khazraj in Madinah fought for decades but it is only through Islam that united them and gave them the honor of being the Ansar (supporters) and their lives both in this temporary world and everlasting hereafter changed for good! Furthermore, the unification of people from different backgrounds from Andalusia (Spain), Sindh (India), Baghdad (Iraq), Damascus (al-Sham/Syria), Al-Quds (Palestine), Constantinople/Instanbul (Turkey) under the Khilafah (Caliphate) reign is a testimony that comprehensive implementation of the Shari’ah (Qur’an and Sunnah) is the antidote to racism, tribalism and nationalism.
Therefore, South Africa and Africa in general if they truly yearn for true unity; then they must liberate themselves from the secular capitalist ideology by cutting ties to the Western colonialists who are the champions of that invalid ideology bedeviling humanity across the world by prioritizing racism, tribalism, nationalism on the pretext of personal freedom! The only way to radically achieve a xenophobia free Africa and world at large is by embracing the call for the resumption of the Islamic way of life via the reestablishment of the Khilafah on the method of Prophethood; that will liberate Africa and Middle East from Western colonialist, Kashmir from the Indian polytheists, Al-Quds from the filthy Jews! Ultimately spread peace and tranquility across the world under the shade of Islam.
(وَيَوْمَئِذٍ يَفْرَحُ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ)
“And that day the believers will rejoice.” [Ar-Rum: 4]
Ali Nassoro Ali
Member of Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir in Kenya
Article No.62: Friday, 21 Muharram 1441 | 2019/09/20