Stephen Nakonya
3 June 2008
opinion
Kampala — THE recent riots against foreigners in South Africa was a reminder that xenophobia exists among us and that it only takes a little incitement for civilised and law-abiding citizens to destroy the lives and property of non-natives who have lived peacefully in their midst for many years.
However, Ugandans on the other hand like foreigners. On a recent talk show on one of the FM radio stations, former MP Ken Lukyamuzi said it only takes two hours for a foreigner to become a Ugandan citizen, which sums up the experience of foreigners here.
Cases where foreigners are ill-treated because they are not native are rare. Ugandans have an incurable fascination for foreigners. In my former work places, there were many foreigners but I did not witness any being ill-treated either in word or deed. In Panos Eastern Africa where I worked until 2004, the majority of high-ranking officials were foreigners but my fellow staff members treated them with respect and love.
During the post-election violence in Kenya, many Ugandans were targeted despite the fact that there are many Kenyans living in Uganda. But there were hardly any calls for revenge by Ugandans. The same can be said about our other neighbours from Sudan, Tanzania, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Foreigners hold good jobs in big companies here. Our schools, universities and neighbourhoods are filled with foreigners. They can buy land here, benefit from government programmes such as free primary and secondary education and even get passports. Apart from a few odd comments, there are hardly any cases of hate speech targeting foreigners in Uganda.
When an Indian was killed during the April 2007 demonstrations against the proposal by the Government to give-away part of the Mabira Forest reserve for sugarcane growing, the Government sent a delegation to India and also fundraised for the deceased's family.
Sometime back, when there was a stand-off between Uganda and Kenya, Christopher Iga, the former mayor of Kampala, went out of his way to urge Ugandans not to retaliate against Kenyan living here. One can cite the case of Amin and his expulsion of Indians in the early 70s but then, Amin was not playing with a "full deck of cards," as the saying goes.
Contrary to public opinion in many countries, foreigners are not only there to take away the jobs and livelihoods of deserving natives but they actually contribute positively to the economies of their host countries. Most take on jobs that the natives do not want and at lower wages.
Also, people migrate to other countries looking for a better life. Thus, they have drive, initiative, are hard-working, and have above average intelligence. They contribute positively to the host economies just like recent research carried out in the US and reported in The Economist showed.
People who have visited Uganda or are living here usually say Ugandans are incurably friendly, they are not just being polite but are stating a fact. Therefore, in case one is tempted to cast a stone at a South African living here in retaliation for what our people are suffered back in their country, my advice would be; just be Ugandan.
Virtue, they say, is its own reward. South Africans should borrow a leaf from us and treat foreigners with gratitude because they stood by them when they were groaning under the heel of apartheid.
The writer is a concerned citizen
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 New Vision. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
