Soweto Businesses: South Africans, Foreigners Don’t Have Equal Rights

Written by Staff

Mar 17, 2015

Members of the Soweto Business Association walked out of mediation talks with foreign nationals affected by looting in Soweto in January, saying they will not accept that they are equal to foreigners.

Mediation was hosted by the Small Business Development Ministry which set up a task team to reintegrate foreign business owners into Soweto.

But talks stalled Friday after the South African shop owners walked out saying South Africans should be the first to get resources because they’re not equal to foreigners.

The association’s Mphuthi Mphuthi says foreigners need to take the back seat.

“We carry the green ID book. That on its own is a licence for us to enjoy first priority in anything and everything that is provided in South Africa especially by the South African government.”

Head of the South African Pakistani Association, Salmaan Khan, says there needs to be a serious change in attitude if foreign shop owners are to be reintegrated.

“By the constitution, anybody who is in South Africa has equal rights. And people need to understand that most of the world’s economy is built by foreign workers, so people should not live in potholes, they should be more broadminded in their thinking.”