Idland has recently brought up the subject of Basotho mistreating other races in Lesotho. “Billions of blue blistering barnacles,” as the captain would have said. The top question is of course, why? Why would Basotho, of all peoples, do so?
Most of the ill-treatment is directed at the Chinese population, and consists of muggings, robberies and property degradation. It comes as a surprise to me, because as far as I can remember there’s always been a Chinese population in Lesotho, and an Indian one (Makula), and a Portuguese one (Mapotoketsi), and an Italian one (Mataliana). Any racism had mainly come from some members of these groups, and rarely the other way around. But today we hear that,
Why? Are the Chinese really rude, careless and cheap? Isn’t that what other ethnic groups tell us, black people, when we reside in those people’s countries? Isn’t that what white Americans say about black Americans? How do we, Basotho, imagine we can get away with taking people of the same origin and lumping them into the same behavioural bag?Sadly, racist attitudes are not limited to people of poor education, or even to locals, but also find regular voice among wealthy expatriates, many of whom are happy to tell you that the Chinese are the same around the world: rude, careless, cheap, etc. [wakanaka.blogspot.com]
Not all white people are racists, yet we’ve known white racists just across the border, haven’t we? Not all African men are male chauvinists, yet we’ve known a fair share of those on our continent. So how can we turn around today and smear an ethnic group with collective labels, as some of our country people seem to be doing? We have fought against such practices in the past, when they were directed at us. We must fight them again today, when we direct them at others.
We have so far only considered the moral and common-sense aspect of the issue. There’s an economic angle. Carrying out hate crimes (if that’s what they are) against foreigners will only
- invite potential investors to back off and to go look elsewhere,
- speed up the closure of foreign controlled but job giving businesses,
- create a climate of instability that is incompatible with a healthy economy.
I have yet to read Idland’s commentary. Nevertheless, let me note that I would hesitate to say say that many Basotho are racist, though I would agree that many I know aren’t very fond of the Chinese here.
Most seem to simply harbor some jealousy about the fact that these foreigners have come in, set up shops, and are making money off the locals. Meanwhile, we don’t see many Basotho following their lead. Some Basotho admire the Chinese for this success. My principal, for example, has often commented that she wishes she could collaborate with other Basotho to buy stock together at cheaper prices as the Chinese do. But we Basotho are too jealous of one another to work like that, she says. Conversely, others, like some of my students, say they dislike the Chinese because all the Chinese care about is money. They sit in their shops and take inventory and eat noodles and accuse you of stealing from them, they say. It seems like a jealousy thing again.
But racism? I wouldn’t consider it racism. Racism seems to describe a broader and more sinister sentiment than the envy towards and mocking of Chinese I’ve encountered in Lesotho.
Greg
Comment by Greg Alder — 23 April 2006 @ 7:38 am
Xenophobia, Rethabile? It’s a much underrated word. We in South Africa know it well. Mind you, we South Africans don’t, but ask any Zimbabwean, Angolan, German, Rwandan, Pommie… sorry, British, DRC or Japanese visitor, refugee or immigrant. They know it all too well. Like most of our global fellows, we don’t tolerate furriners well. On the one hand, they say racism is a learned trait. Perhaps. On the other, perhaps xenophobia isn’t. Perhaps it’s a natural defence mechanism that, in a world measured in travel time rather than distance, needs to be overcome. Fast. It does none of us any good.
Comment by Mike Golby — 23 April 2006 @ 9:25 pm
I (an American) was visiting Butha-Buthe last month, and was quite surprised to see so many Chinese. As I’ve worked in China for a bit, and can speak Chinese, I asked one of the shopowners why he’d come all the way to Lesotho. He said, “You have a lot of Chinese in America, right?” I answered, “Of course.” He then said, “Well, there are a lot of Chinese everywhere - we have a lot of people!”
I didn’t really notice much in the way of racism toward the Chinese while I was there, but it was quite evident that the larger shops tended to be owned by Chinese.
Comment by cure — 24 April 2006 @ 8:26 pm
You want to see xenophobia? Just cross the border to our proud neighbor South Africa
Comment by Moliehi — 29 April 2006 @ 7:18 pm
“Most seem to simply harbor some jealousy about the fact that these foreigners have come in, set up shops, and are making money off the locals.”
“Like most of our global fellows, we don’t tolerate furriners well. On the one hand, they say racism is a learned trait. Perhaps. On the other, perhaps xenophobia isn’t. Perhaps it’s a natural defence mechanism.”
“Well, there are a lot of Chinese everywhere - we have a lot of people.”
“You want to see xenophobia? Just cross the border to our proud neighbor South Africa.”
——————–
All true, as far as I’m concerned. Moliehi, perhaps the South African’s xenophobia is more pronounced than a Mosotho’s. That hardly prevents you or I from trying to understand the phenomenon and doing away with it eventually.
Comment by Rethabile Masilo — 29 April 2006 @ 10:09 pm