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SAFRICA REFUGEES XENOPHOBIA -- WEB

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  • SAFRICA REFUGEES XENOPHOBIA -- WEB
  • June 16, 2022
  • Content Type Package
  • Language English
  • Transcript/Script SAFRICA REFUGEES XENOPHOBIA HEADLINE: Refugees in South Africa Demand Move Over Xenophobia TEASER: Rising xenophobic sentiment has seen protests, killing of one foreign national in South Africa this year PUBLISHED AT: 6/16/22, 3:23p BYLINE: Linda Givetash CONTRIBUTOR: DATELINE: PRETORIA, South Africa VIDEOGRAPHER: Zaheer Cassim VIDEO EDITOR: SCRIPT EDITORS: DLJ, MAS VIDEO SOURCE (S): Original, Zoom PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _X_ RADIO _X_ TRT: 2:30 VID APPROVED BY: Reifenrath TYPE: TVPKG EDITOR NOTES: There is a radio story accompanying this piece.)) ((INTRO)) A group of refugees in South Africa have been camped in front of U.N. offices since May, begging to be moved to a third country because of xenophobia. The refugees from Burundi, Congo, Malawi and Rwanda say returning to their home countries is not safe and they no longer feel welcome in South Africa. Linda Givetash reports from Pretoria. ((NARRATOR)) Some of these refugees have been living in South Africa for two decades, but now they say they no longer feel safe. Most are from the Democratic Republic of Congo, where they escaped war. But increasingly, they say they’ve had their small businesses looted, homes robbed and been personally attacked amid growing waves of xenophobia. ((Lillian Nyota, Congolese Refugee, (English, 15 sec)) “We ran away from our country, running from tribulations. We came here in South Africa, we found more trouble, more tribulations. Because xenophobic attack is real." ((NARRATOR)) South Africa is home to more than 250,000 asylum-seekers. This group says they’ve moved from community to community, but violence eventually follows. They’re now asking the United Nations Refugee Agency to move them to a safe third country. ((Lillian Nyota, Congolese Refugee, (English, 15 sec)) “Any place that they can take us, that way we can be safe with our families. We can live and move on with our lives so that our children can go to school.” ((NARRATOR)) Xenophobic violence has become increasingly pronounced in South Africa, with bursts of riots and murders since 2008. Earlier this year, amid a wave of anti-migrant marches, a Zimbabwean man was killed in a Johannesburg township, authorities say, because of his nationality. Experts blame the problem on the country’s history of violence, socioeconomic issues, and growing anti-foreigner politics. ((Silindile Mlilo, University of Witwatersrand Researcher (English, 20 sec)) “Normally, when there is xenophobic violence, is that when it happens, there is no differentiation of like, are you a refugee? Are you an asylum seeker?” // “If government is not seen as doing anything, it also discourages migrants and refugees who are in the country, because it's like, is it safe for me?” ((NARRATOR)) Resettlement is not an option for most refugees. The U.N. Refugee Agency, UNHCR, says only 1 percent of refugees globally are moved from one host country to another for exceptional circumstances. ((Laura Padoan, UNHCR South Africa, (English, 25 sec)) “It's really only the most vulnerable refugees who are eligible for resettlement, so that can be survivors of sexual or gender-based violence. It can be women and children at risk, people at risk because of their religious persecution.” (5:30) “We really urge these refugees to take up the offer of local integration or repatriation, because no one wants to see people living out on the street.” ((NARRATOR)) But these refugees maintain re-integration is not an option and say they will stay camped here until there’s a plan for them to leave South Africa. ((Linda Givetash, for VOA News, Pretoria)
  • NewsML Media Topics Arts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
  • Network VOA
  • Location (dateline) SAFRICA REFUGEES XENOPHOBIA HEADLINE: Refugees in South Africa Demand Move Over Xenophobia TEASER: Rising xenophobic sentiment has seen protests, killing of one foreign national in South Africa this year PUBLISHED AT: 6/16/22, 3:23p BYLINE: Linda Givetash CONTRIBUTOR: DATELINE: PRETORIA, South Africa VIDEOGRAPHER: Zaheer Cassim VIDEO EDITOR: SCRIPT EDITORS: DLJ, MAS VIDEO SOURCE (S): Original, Zoom PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _X_ RADIO _X_ TRT: 2:30 VID APPROVED BY: Reifenrath TYPE: TVPKG EDITOR NOTES: There is a radio story accompanying this piece.)) ((INTRO)) A group of refugees in South Africa have been camped in front of U.N. offices since May, begging to be moved to a third country because of xenophobia. The refugees from Burundi, Congo, Malawi and Rwanda say returning to their home countries is not safe and they no longer feel welcome in South Africa. Linda Givetash reports from Pretoria. ((NARRATOR)) Some of these refugees have been living in South Africa for two decades, but now they say they no longer feel safe. Most are from the Democratic Republic of Congo, where they escaped war. But increasingly, they say they’ve had their small businesses looted, homes robbed and been personally attacked amid growing waves of xenophobia. ((Lillian Nyota, Congolese Refugee, (English, 15 sec)) “We ran away from our country, running from tribulations. We came here in South Africa, we found more trouble, more tribulations. Because xenophobic attack is real." ((NARRATOR)) South Africa is home to more than 250,000 asylum-seekers. This group says they’ve moved from community to community, but violence eventually follows. They’re now asking the United Nations Refugee Agency to move them to a safe third country. ((Lillian Nyota, Congolese Refugee, (English, 15 sec)) “Any place that they can take us, that way we can be safe with our families. We can live and move on with our lives so that our children can go to school.” ((NARRATOR)) Xenophobic violence has become increasingly pronounced in South Africa, with bursts of riots and murders since 2008. Earlier this year, amid a wave of anti-migrant marches, a Zimbabwean man was killed in a Johannesburg township, authorities say, because of his nationality. Experts blame the problem on the country’s history of violence, socioeconomic issues, and growing anti-foreigner politics. ((Silindile Mlilo, University of Witwatersrand Researcher (English, 20 sec)) “Normally, when there is xenophobic violence, is that when it happens, there is no differentiation of like, are you a refugee? Are you an asylum seeker?” // “If government is not seen as doing anything, it also discourages migrants and refugees who are in the country, because it's like, is it safe for me?” ((NARRATOR)) Resettlement is not an option for most refugees. The U.N. Refugee Agency, UNHCR, says only 1 percent of refugees globally are moved from one host country to another for exceptional circumstances. ((Laura Padoan, UNHCR South Africa, (English, 25 sec)) “It's really only the most vulnerable refugees who are eligible for resettlement, so that can be survivors of sexual or gender-based violence. It can be women and children at risk, people at risk because of their religious persecution.” (5:30) “We really urge these refugees to take up the offer of local integration or repatriation, because no one wants to see people living out on the street.” ((NARRATOR)) But these refugees maintain re-integration is not an option and say they will stay camped here until there’s a plan for them to leave South Africa. ((Linda Givetash, for VOA News, Pretoria)
  • Embargo Date June 16, 2022 18:42 EDT
  • Byline ((Linda Givetash, for VOA News, Pretoria))
  • Brand / Language Service Voice of America - English
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