Durban, South Africa - The
recent xenophobic violence in South Africa against migrant workers has
sparked a new diplomatic rift with Nigeria, with the South African
government condemning Nigeria's decision to withdraw its envoys from
Pretoria.
On Sunday, the South African government released a statement calling
Nigeria's move "an unfortunate and regrettable step" and said the
government and a wide range of civic organisations had been "decisive
and unequivocal" in condemning the attacks on foreign nationals in the
country.
The statement by South Africa's Department of International
Cooperation, however, goes on to deride the Nigerian government over its
inability to rein in the Boko Haram insurgency in the north of its
country. It also points out that South Africa did not blame the Nigerian
government for mishandling the aftermath of the collapse of a church
building in 2014, which left 84 South Africans dead.
Nigeria's acting high commissioner in South Africa, Ambassador Martin
Cobham, and the consul-general, Ambassador Uche Ajulu-Okeke were called
home on Saturday to brief the Nigerian parliament about the welfare of
Nigerian citizens in South Africa following the anti-immigrant violence
in Durban and Johannesburg.
Tolu Ogunlesi, West Africa editor of the Africa Report magazine,
criticised the tenor of the South African government's statement.
Ogunlesi said it was not logical to compare the Nigerian Church
disaster in 2014 to the xenophobic attacks and referring to the church
disaster was misplaced in a diplomatic context. The Nigerian government
has been criticised for mishandling the response to the collapse, with
bodies repatriated some nine months after the incident.
"The statement sounded like the thoughts of someone, rather than a diplomatic response," he said.
Many South Africans however, including prominent South African
analyst, Eusebius McKaiser, have described South Africa's response as
justified.
“This response from South Africa - via Clayson Monyela [deputy
director-general of the Department of International Relations and
Co-Operation] - is fully justified in my view," McKaiser wrote on
Facebook on Sunday night.
"However it certainly helps neither South Africa nor Nigeria - and
definitely not the continent, geopolitically - for diplomatic relations
between us to deteriorate," he added. Nigeria 'opportunistic'
While some have described Nigeria's decision to recall its envoy as
"opportunistic", others say the action has only come after public
pressure.
"The government did not say anything even in the face of protests
almost on a daily basis especially in Abuja and Lagos," Deji Badmus, a
freelance journalist based in Lagos, said.
Badmus told Al Jazeera that the government decided to act following
the decision of the parliament and a meeting of the Nigerian senate.
"I don't think it would have been proper for the Nigerian government
to say nothing, do nothing, when, foreigners, not just Nigerians are
being attacked in South Africa," Badmus said.
Jackie Cilliers, executive director of the Institute for Security
Studies in Pretoria, however feels that Nigeria's diplomatic withdrawal
is not indicative of a continent-wide indictment of the South African
government's failure to stop anti-immigrant violence.
"I don't think Nigeria's action is a statement on behalf of the rest
of the continent," he said, adding that the "reality is Africa is
multi-polar and there is no singular country that can speak for the
entire continent". Rift between leaders
Few believe Nigeria's decision to recall its envoys speaks for anyone other than themselves.
Nigeria and South Africa haven't enjoyed close relations in the past
decade, especially under the leadership of presidents Jacob Zuma and
Goodluck Jonathan. Analysts see this rift as part of the larger story of
worsening relations between the two countries.
"It has become an all-out contest for influence in Africa between South Africa and Nigeria," Cilliers said.
Leaders from Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe have publicly condemned
the attacks, with both Malawi and Zimbabwe sending buses to repatriate
citizens following the violence.
Few doubt however, that the violence has been a blow to South Africa's image.
"I think African states have reacted quite strongly to the xenophobic violence in South Africa this time," Cilliers said.
Zuma's administration has come under much criticism for the violence.
But not everyone agrees the South African government's response has
been poor. Cilliers, for one, describes the government's response as
"admirable".
Tolu Ogunlesi said the latest developments between
the two countries was only a manifestation of the quality of leadership
in both.
"President Goodluck Jonathan has been a dismal leader and Zuma has also not lived up to his responsibility," he said from Lagos.
"They both don't inspire confidence within their countries and outside."
At least seven people in South Africa have been killed in the attacks
against migrants since March 20, when South Africa's Zulu King Goodwill
Zwelithini spoke out against foreign workers.
Moral Reputation: Johnny Crooner, Yemi Alade Performs For General Buhari
I know it is just a
matter of "them doing their jobs" but in other countries when artists
perform for or during a politician's rally; it is usually their way of
endorsing that candidate for their fans and supporters too, I just
wonder, with Yemi Alade performing for controversial former head of
state of Nigeria and I think to myself surely something is wrong with
this, is this not morally questionable?
Actress Annie Idibia has come a long way in her relationship with 2Face
Idibia, she held him down from the beginning, but when he started
hooking up with other chicks and getting them pregnant she left him for
her own sanity and was even a single mother of their daughter Isabella. But
all is well that ends well cos Annie got her man and today they are
happily living together as husband & wife with their 2 kids. Yesterday the celeb wife shared a throwback picture from 2011 and shared an encouraging message for the single moms out. Check out what she wrote after the jump, Tbt
#2011 #singledays # singlemum …. A big S/O to all the single mums out
there,it not easy,ve been a single mum B4 n i know about all the
challenges of trying to b mummy and daddy at the same time..it so hard…
God bless u all and my prayers goes to u this morning. Her words got a lot of praise from her followers who commended her for being a role model.