2023-12-23 22:59:51
“Dudula” is isiZulu and means “to drive out”. The name says it all: driving migrants without residence permits out of the country is the core concern of the group founded in 2021 in the Johannesburg township of Soweto. Vigilante supporters see them as the culprits for drug-related crime and the high unemployment rate in the country. According to current data, one in three South Africans is without a job.
“We have to be realistic here that most of the problems we have are caused by the influx of foreigners,” Zandile Dabula, who was elected president of Operation Dudula in June, claimed in a recent BBC interview. She speculates that foreign citizens are working on a 20-year plan to take over South Africa – but when asked, admits that this is a rumor, which she believes to be true.
APA/AFP/Phill Magakoe Members of “Operation Dudula” demonstrate in South Africa’s capital Pretoria
“Operation Dudula” registered as a political party
With clearly xenophobic slogans, “Operation Dudula” wants to gain control of the levers of power. The vigilante group recently registered as a political party. The plan is to fight for seats in next year’s parliamentary elections. The group wants to have a presence in seven of the nine South African provinces. Specifically, “Operation Dudula” aims to field candidates in 1,500 of the country’s 4,468 electoral districts.
Between hate slogans and image polish
The violence is primarily directed against people from other African countries. At the group’s first national meeting in Johannesburg in May, supporters of the group – many of whom wore military-style clothing – chanted: “Burn the foreigner,” according to the BBC. We’re going to go to the gas station, buy gas and burn the foreigner.” The movement has been sued by civil rights groups for illegal evictions and improper citizenship checks.
However, the group wants to change its image before the 2024 elections, as the Guardian reports. “We want to demilitarize Operation Dudula,” spokesman Isaac Lesole told the newspaper. “Now that we have taken a new stance, we must guarantee that we can still achieve a lot without people being militant and killing or kicking things. As a political party, different rules apply to us,” he said. The movement adheres to the xenophobic ideology. It is unclear how their further program will be structured.
Mythos Massenmigration
The xenophobic rhetoric from politicians, public figures and vigilantes has fueled the myth that the country is being overrun by immigrants, says the BBC. However, this is not reflected in the numbers: South Africa has a population of almost 60 million (as of 2021). The Institute for Security Studies (ISS) puts the number of migrants in the country at 3.95 million. That’s 6.5 percent of the population, the report continues. According to ISS, this includes all immigrants, regardless of their legal status.
A majority of the population would see foreign citizens as a threat, experts warned, citing data from the South African Social Attitudes Survey from 2021. Xenophobia has increased since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.
Riots as the origin
“Operation Dudula” was formed in response to riots that broke out in June 2021 in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng provinces. In the absence of the police, vigilante groups had formed to protect local businesses from thieves and robberies. The township of Soweto, where the vigilante movement originated, was once at the forefront of the resistance against apartheid and was the home of Nelson Mandela, South Africa’s first democratically elected president.
ISS researcher Lizette Lancaster told the Guardian that the “chronic failure” of the South African state – specifically, flourishing corruption, high unemployment and violence – created the right breeding ground for the group’s success.
“People are desperate, people are suffering and as a result they are turning to the most vulnerable and the easiest target, which is migrants, particularly illegal migrants and those who are undocumented,” said Dale McKinley of the anti-racism group Kopanang Africa Against Xenophobia (KAAX) on al-Jazeera. In fact, migrants do not represent a burden, but rather make a significant contribution to the economy, according to Nomzamo Zondo from the Institute for Socioeconomic Rights (SERI).
“Operation Dudula” is not expected to win majorities in the 2024 elections. “The fragmented nature of South African politics means that small parties can influence the formation of coalition governments – and demand major concessions in return,” the paper continues.
ANC struggles with xenophobic policies
Established parties such as the ruling African National Congress (ANC) are finding it difficult to deal with the emerging movement. President Cyril Ramaphosa in April described Operation Dudula as a “vigilante-like force” taking “illegal actions” against foreigners. However, support for the ANC has been dwindling among the population for years – surveys suggest the party could fall below the 50 percent mark for the first time ever.
But apart from Ramaphosa’s criticism, xenophobic slogans can also be found in the ANC: ANC spokesman Pule Mabe stated in an interview with “Mail&Guardian” last year that “Operation Dudula” confirmed the views of the ANC. Foreigners, he said, would come to the country to sell drugs and run illegal businesses. Given the mood in the country, the left-wing radical party Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) also called for more South Africans to be employed in pubs. “Ultimately, Dudula will not be the only party that is right-wing or anti-immigrant,” said Amir Sheikh, spokesman for the African Diaspora Forum.
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