Xenophobic Attack: ‘They Killed My Son After Mistaking Him for a Foreigner,’ Says Grieving South African Mother Mourning Her 19-Year-Old Video.
A 19-year-old South African man was stabbed to death in Mossel Bay over the weekend after a group of people accused him of being a foreigner. His mother, who is now left to plan his funeral without a job or steady income, says she is heartbroken that her own country’s people killed her child.
The young man, Nhlamulo, was a Tsonga South African. According to his grieving mother, those who attacked him did not believe he belonged in the country. They called him a foreigner and turned violent. By the time help arrived, it was too late.
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Speaking from her home, the mother said she cannot understand how her son was taken away so easily. “They thought he was not South African. But he was. He was born here. Now I have to bury my boy,” she told those who came to check on her.
It is surprising to many that she is not demanding justice in for the murder of her son. Instead, she is asking other South Africans to step in and assist with funeral costs because she has no money. “I am unemployed. I don’t have anything. Please help me lay my son to rest,” she said.
The incident has brought back painful memories of similar attacks that have happened across the country over the last few months. Reports obtained by Toktok9ja Media show that tensions have been building for a while. Many South Africans have been pointing fingers at foreign nationals, accusing them of taking available jobs, committing crimes, and causing other problems in local communities.
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These accusations have turned deadly. Several foreign nationals have lost their lives. In response, a number of African countries have started pulling their citizens out of South Africa. Ghana recently evacuated about 1,000 of its people following a series of anti-immigrant protests. Nigeria has also announced plans to bring its citizens back home.
What makes this latest death even harder to accept is that the victim was not a foreigner at all. He was a 19-year-old Tsonga man who grew up in the country. His only crime was looking like someone the attackers did not want around.
His mother’s request for burial help, rather than a loud call for punishment, shows how much pain she is carrying. She is not marching or making threats. She is simply trying to give her son a proper goodbye. And that, for many people watching this story unfold, is a very sad sign of how broken things have become. Justice is what she should be demanding or is she supporting what is going on in her country? Many asked.
This is not just about a young man who lost his life. It is about what happens when fear and anger take the place of conversation. It is about what happens when people are judged by how they look or where someone thinks they are from. And it is a reminder that xenophobia does not only hurt those who cross borders. Sometimes, it kills its own.
As African leaders continue to discuss how to protect their citizens in South Africa, families like Nhlamulo’s are left with empty chairs at their tables. And one unemployed mother is left hoping that strangers will show her the kindness her son was never shown.
Xenophobic Attack: ‘They Killed My Son After Mistaking Him for a Foreigner,’ Says Grieving South African Mother Mourning Her 19-Year-Old Video.
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