The Zimbabwean labour issue

LEPHALALE – The alleged involvement of Zimbabwean citizens in violent attacks in this area has sparked serious conflict between the farmers, the community and the foreign nationals.
According to reports the serious attack on Michael Beukes and his wife who was residing in the Vaalwater area, was instigated by a Zimbabwean national.  In another attack a man was killed in the Lephalale area when he tried to stop a domestic dispute between a Zimbabwean citizen and his South African girlfriend. These incidents have caused a frenzy on social media networks with many South Africans, including AfriForum, calling for the legislation that allow Zimbabweans to work in South Africa for 90 days without a visa, to be recalled.
Although most people are opposed to the xenophobic attacks ravaging the country lately, employers have been cautioned against employing Zimbabweans without ensuring that they have the proper documentation. “Farmers should not be tempted to let somebody provide cheap labour without taking proper precautions to ensure that the worker is legally in the country,” one farmer warned. One resident in Marapong told Northern News: “We have many foreign nationals in our community who are not working they come to SA looking for work, but we don’t even have enough work for our own people.”
The government together with several big organisations and individuals have widely condemned all attacks on foreign nationals in this country.
“Not all people who come from Zimbabwe are violent,” one Zimbabwean who did not want to be named said.  She is living in a one room shack in Marapong which she shares with her South African boyfriend and her three children.
“Our country (Zimbabwe) is very poor and people are desperate to get work and provide food for our children,” she said “Most Zimbabweans want to live in peace with our neighbours in South Africa. We do not want to go back to Zimbabwe.”
In an effort to ensure that foreign nationals feel welcome in SA the communications Minister Faith Muthambi embarked on an outreach programme on Friday 24 April at Musina and the Beit Bridge border post entitled “We are all Africans”. This programme was seen as a great success by the government and was aimed at creating positive foreign relations with other African nations.