CRY MY BELOVED COUNTRY - a response from Duane

Here is a response from Duane who read my blog entry “Cry My Beloved Country”.

The government segregated education, medical care, and other public services with inferior standards for blacks. The black education system within "white South Africa", by design, prepared blacks for lives as a labouring class. There was a deliberate policy in "white South Africa" of making services for black people inferior to those of whites, to try to "encourage" black people to move into the black homelands, hence black people ended up with services inferior to those of whites, and, to a lesser extent, to those of Indians, and 'coloureds'. With this in mind, why are you suprised at the level of primitive, thugish behavior going on in your country? You reap what you sow. I too am in UAE, sick to my stomach with you lot of self exiled South Africans trashing your homeland. Have you no pride? or is sticking your country flag to the back of your car and cheering for the Springboks the extent of your pride?

Thank you, Duane, from wherever. Let me see if I actually understand you correctly…In the article on my blog that you refer to, I mention the tragic death of a 22 year old victim of car-jacking, the death of a 12 year old girl who was killed in the crossfire between security guards and robbers, the serious injury of a 29 year old victim of car-jacking, the professional opinion of an outstanding academic that “South Africa is in big trouble”, and the thug rule of criminals who impersonate police officers. And, in your humble opinion, we self-exiled South African expats in the UAE should stop whining and just offer our children and families to the fires of Moloch? After all, you argue, we are only reaping what we sowed! The essence of our bad, bad attitude, you suggest, is a lack of national pride.

Here’s the picture of you that emerges in my mind. You are the father of the 22 year old student who died tragically as a victim of car-jacking. You are informed of this tragedy by the Police Services. You smile, shrug your soldiers and say: “Ah well, you win some, you lose some. All in the name of my national pride!” You are the father of the 12 year old girl who dies in a spray of bullets by thugs and criminals who rob houses and who don’t hesitate to kill as they ransack the property of others. Your response? “Ja well, I am a proud white South African, and I happily offer my daughter’s innocent life. I am reaping what I sowed. Life for life. I am proud to be South African!”

You seem to miss the fact that I cry for every life that is lost to crime in South Africa, regardless of creed or colour. Are you maybe suggesting that crimes against me are justified merely because I am a white (Afrikaner) victim? Would you still argue for the acquiescent pacifism of national pride if a black citizen is killed or if you were personally the victim of crime?

Please consider the following…

THE BBC

9 years ago, on Thursday, 27 May, 1999, the BBC ran an article entitled “South Africa’s crime crisis”. The writer, Jane Standley, remarked: “I talk to black and white South Africans and they are all afraid of guns, of crime. They are all afraid of the violence which all too often accompanies even a straightforward burglary or mugging” [underlining mine]. The ideas I write about on my blog that elicited your response represent the reflections of a white, Afrikaner male who is also one of the “all” in the above comment.
But, you seem too irritable with white (Afrikaner) expats in the UAE, so I shall let the mouth of another speak for me: “To live with the statistics is not easy. A serious crime is committed every 17 seconds in South Africa and Johannesburg is the epicentre of the crisis. The reality behind the statistics means that I live behind a high brick wall, topped with an electric fence. I cannot see the street outside: I cannot see the horizon. My house is alarmed day and night: so is my garage. I pull in and out of it fast: most armed carjackings take place in people's own driveways” [underlining mine].

You are too eager to assume that I am yet another example of a disillusioned white Afrikaner who has fled the land of my birth in protest against a post-apartheid society. I acknowledge the fact that there are many such examples in the UAE, but I suspect that your own racial prejudice against white Afrikaners is the source of your comments about my views. I shall let Jane Standley continue my case for me: “For a people so traumatised, the fact that there has been so little revenge since the first all-race elections five years ago, is nothing short of miraculous. But nothing can excuse the unnecessary loss of life every day in this country through violent crime. It adds new traumas onto the old - for black people as well as whites are the victims” [underlining mine]. Yes, Duane, it is not only white South Africans that are the victims of the crimes that I wrote about. We are all held at ransom by criminal mobs that destroy the beautiful land of our birth. Please notice that the BBC article was written 9 years ago!

CNN

http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/1998/africa/s.africa/

CNN Interactive Writer, Beat Witschi wrote in 1998 of South Africa: “South Africa can be a very dangerous place, both for natives and visitors alike. That is the perception -- and perception, as many politicians can attest to, is almost as important as reality. Media coverage of crime is intense in South Africa, reflecting growing public concern that crime is rampant and that the government is not doing enough to curb it” [underlining mine]. The writer reports the case of Rob Kaplan which I remember very well: “Then there are the particularly gruesome and headline-grabbing crime cases, such as that of Rob Kaplan. He nearly died last year after an armed robbery at his Johannesburg home. He received more than a dozen puncture wounds, some 30 blows to the head and was tortured with a burning clothes iron. Miraculously, he survived and his case became the country's best-publicized crime of brutality. He didn't flee, and is trying to fight back. "Why should I leave this country that I love so much?" he said last year. So he launched his own anti-crime group”.

STATISTICS SOUTH AFRICA’S “VICTIMS OF CRIME SURVEY” IN 1997

http://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/VictimsOfCrime/VictimsOfCrime1997.pdf
The survey conducted by Statistics South Africa was a “countrywide, household-based survey, it examines crime from the point of view of the victim” [i]. The survey points out that: “South African studies show similar trends to those in other developing countries. For example, property crime is the most frequently-occurring type of crime in South African cities. This is followed by violent crimes against individuals, such as robbery and assault” [underlining mine]. The article on my blog is not a pseudo-intellectual exercise in impotent Afrikaner nationalism (which I despise, for the record!), but the perspective and heartfelt agony of a victim of crime in South Africa. Here are some statistics from this survey that you need to know about:

§ Forty-four per cent of all households in South Africa claimed to have experienced at least one crime during the five-year period 1993-1997.
§ Approximately 29% of individuals in South Africa aged 16 years or more indicated that they had experienced at least one crime during the five-year period 1993-1997.

THE INSTITUTE FOR SECURITY STUDIES - THE SECOND NATIONAL VICTIMS OF CRIME SURVEY IN SOUTH AFRICA

“The survey was designed to ensure comparability with the 1998 national Victims of Crime survey conducted by Statistics South Africa for the Department of Safety and Security and the United Nations International Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI). It was conducted between September and October 2003. Information on public perceptions about crime and safety; crime levels in South Africa; and overview of selected crime types available”. http://andromeda.rutgers.edu/~wcjlen/WCJ/stats/safrica.html

You can see for yourself that in some cases there have been a welcome improvement in reported crime statistics for 2001/2002-2005/2006, and all South Africans are grateful for this! But, the overall picture remains decidely grim and ominous! http://www.issafrica.org/cjm/stats0906/_pdf/category/rsa_total.pdf

UNITED NATIONS – 7th SURVEY OF CRIME TRENDS AND OPERATIONS OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEMS

The 7th United Nations Survey of Crime Trends and Operations of Criminal Justice Systems, covering the period 1998 - 2000 (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Centre for International Crime Prevention) compared South African crimes statistics with other countries and it reports that, compared to 65 other countries, South Africa had the highest incidence of rapes per capita. Out of 32 countries, South Africa also headed the list for murders with firearms, per capita. In terms of total crimes, South Africa was 5th out of 60 countries, and in terms of total crimes per capita, South Africa was 10th. I would dare to say that these statistics are sufficient grounds for my tears and my weeping. But, just in case this becomes a futile numbers-quoting game, let me conclude with the real and agonising stories of those for whom I weep.
http://www.nationmaster.com/country/sf-south-africa/cri-crime

I conclude with a list of examples of victims of crime, reported in the Sowetan on 28 February, 2008. This newspaper reflects the views of a predominantly black readership. The reason why I choose this article as my conclusion, is that its title “Read and weep” echoes the “Cry my beloved country” on my blog. You can read for yourself what proud and nationalist South Africans like me are crying about: http://www.sowetan.co.za/News/Article.aspx?id=716561