(Harry Naidu (left) seen with late veteran struggle leader, R D Naidoo)
While most South Africans – irrespective
of race, colour, creed, culture or religion – have come out against the chaos,
anarchy and instability that have gripped our country over the past week, many
South Africans living abroad have also expressed their shock and anger at the
current state of affairs.
One of them is veteran former
anti-apartheid activist, Harry Naidu, who now lives in Melbourne in Australia.
During the struggle years Mr Naidu was a member and official of the Natal
Sports Congress, South African Council of Sport and other anti-apartheid sports
organisations. He was also closely aligned to the black consciousness movement,
Natal Indian Congress and the United Democratic Front.
Mr Naidu is one of those who writes
regularly about our vision for a non-racial and democratic South Africa where
all citizens should enjoy peace, prosperity, and equality in all fields of
life.
Concerned by the current state of
anarchy in Durban, other parts of KwaZulu-Natal, and Johannesburg and
surrounding areas, Mr Naidu has appealed to President Ramaphosa and the
Government to act swiftly to bring about peace and harmony in the affected areas.
He made this call by submitting a
letter to the South African High Commissioner in Australia.
Mr Naidu made his appeal on the
day President Ramaphosa made an in-loco inspection of the affected areas in
Durban and surrounding areas and spoke to the concerned community and business
leaders.
The police Minister, Bheki Cele,
who arrived in Durban on Thursday, July 15, also accompanied Ramaphosa to the
affected areas.
He said:
“I
write to you with a heavy heart that is filled with pain and anger at the
current situation in our beloved country, South Africa.
“While the current situation is affecting the most
vulnerable people in the country, its impact is felt around the country and
abroad. I am now living in Melbourne, Australia after having spent the best
part of my life in Durban.
“Most of my family and friends currently live in
Durban and some live in other parts of the country. We have been in daily
contact with our loved ones as we are very concerned about their safety and
welfare.
“We are also very concerned that these riots and
the accompanying mayhem has taken on racial proportions. Our country and its
people have suffered for centuries under colonialism and apartheid and we were filled
with euphoria and pride when it transitioned to democracy in 1994.
“I was one of those people who stood with pride for
many hours in long queues to cast my vote in the first democratic election. We
were all filled with hope that our country will be a model democracy where the
rights of all irrespective of race, colour, creed, religious or political
affiliation will be respected.
“I had the good fortune of sharing the stage with
people like Nelson Mandela urging our people to embrace the changes that the
new dawn will bring to the country and its people.
“Sadly, my hope and those of millions of others
started to gradually diminish when we began to see the genesis of the rot that
crept into the political system through state capture, rampant corruption, nepotism,
cronyism, blatant racism and many other socio-political ills that has now beset
our beloved country.
“It is my humble view that what we are witnessing
now in the form of riots, criminality, racial intolerance and deaths is
directly linked to the socio-economic ills that I refer to above.
“At this stage my prime concern is for my immediate
family and my friends whose lives have been in turmoil and fear for the past
week. I feel helpless and so do the many ex-patriate South Africans who live in
Australia and many other parts of the world.
“The mere fact that we are not residing in South
Africa does not diminish our love for the country and its people.
“We are very, very concerned for the lives of ALL
the people and through you, urge the President and the government to bring this mayhem to an end
immediately. We cannot have a situation where people are terrified to venture
out of their homes for fear of being the next victim of the chaos that is now
occurring.
“Mr. High Commissioner, I beg you to take this
matter up urgently with your relevant Minister, and through your Minister to
the President expressing our grave concern and fear for the safety of our many
family members, our friends and our fellow South Africans.
“Our hopes are in your hands and we trust that you
will give this matter the priority it deserves.”
The action taken by Mr Naidu is what one would
expect from all concerned people. Ends – July 16 2021
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