Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Johannesburg (Agenzia Fides) - The South African Church has spoken out against the serious acts of violence committed against immigrants from Zimbabwe and Mozambique in the township of Alexandra, a lower-class suburb near the commerce area of Johannesburg. Since early this week, a series of repeated attacks carried out by a group armed with machetes and guns have killed two people and injured several others.
“The recent attacks on those who were not born in South Africa are a cause of real shame and concern,” said Archbishop Buti Tlhagale.O.M.I., Catholic Archbishop of Johannesburg and President of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC), in a statement sent to Agenzia Fides. “Basic human rights are part of our basic human dignity, given by God. God creates us all equal and creates us all for community. God does not have borders. Jesus, the Son of God, broke all social conventions by showing God’s Love to all. No one has the right to remove our God-given dignity and our human rights, as we have shown in the battle against apartheid,” the Archbishop of Johannesburg affirmed.
“Let us remind ourselves of a few basic points: the Ten Commandments extend to our treatment of foreigners. This means that the statement ‘you shall not kill’ stands in condemnation of the actions of the South African mob which is currently running amok in Alexandra. There have been over 15 incidents of violence against foreigners in South Africa in the last 5 months.
It also means that the statement ‘you shall not covet your neighbour’s goods’ stands in condemnation of those thugs who out of envy attack others who have the skills and industry to get jobs,” Archbishop Tlhagale continued.
The Archbishop exhorts those Catholics who sympathize with the violence, saying, “I am being blunt because bluntness is called for in this situation. Everyone who takes a step in a march in a township to protest ‘foreigners’ is taking a step closer to hell.
I forbid any catholic in this archdiocese from assisting these unruly people or approving of their behaviour. I call on the Catholics and people of good will in Alexandra to be the first to come to the aid of their neighbours who have been so ill treated. I call on the police to enforce the human rights guaranteed in our constitution for all human beings. This is a guarantee of rights of which our country is justly proud.”
In closing his statement, the Archbishop of Johannesburg says, “I call on the victims of this violence to forgive us for our sins.” (LM) (Agenzia Fides 15/5/2008 righe 34, parole 426)
