ZIM’s investigative journalist, Elias Mambo, has a published a book titled Conscience of My Race based on his personal experience with xenophobic attacks that happened in SA in 2008.
In the book, Mambo chronicles how South African politicians and the Zulu Monarch turned a blind eye to the organised killings of non SA citizens, when he was in Durban. He also touches on the implication of the SA police in the attacks and how the justice system let all the culprits off the hook.
Mambo describes the pain of black-on-black killings which he witnessed with an African burnt to death by another African, shops looted and houses set on fire.
Groups of people had to flee and seek refuge in places not fit for human habitation, all because they were not South African.
“I saw African brothers and sisters been burnt alive because they were black and not South Africans,” writes Mambo.
Mambo said the book is meant to show that xenophobia, a horrible reality, is here to stay
“Xenophobia has continued to rear its ugly head in South Africa ever since and the book is also dedicated to those who lost their lives in South Africa because of xenophobia and to those who continue to suffer in silence because they are foreigners the world over.”
In the 80 page book, Mambo also argues that the violence was misnamed as ‘xenophobic attacks’.
“It is not that. It’s Afriphobic hysteria of self-destruction,” he said.
Mambo further says this was not a case of hounding out criminal elements but was plain ‘Black Genocide’.
The book also dwells on stereotyping of foreigners which is widespread in South Africa. For example, Nigerians are said to be all drug dealers while all Zimbabwean women are labelled prostitutes.
Mambo is an investigative journalist with the weekly Harare based Zimbabwe Independent newspaper. – AllAfrica.com
He is known for a series of articles exposing how Zanu PF allegedly recruited Israeli firm, Nikuv, to assist in the manipulation of the voter’s roll and the July 31, 2013 elections.
He is also a blogger and political analyst.
Mambo’s book comes at a time when president Edgar Lungu has had to express his public ‘shame’ after Zambians wnet on the rampage, looting foreign owned shops and bruning alive one person in horrific xenophobic attacks in Lusaka. Mostly affected were refugees from Rwanda.
