This is an interesting turn of events. Just this morning I wrote about Somalis in South Africa protesting the “xenophobic” treatment of Somali migrants by other black people in the Rainbow Nation, here.
Now comes news (really only the photo below, I couldn’t find a story) about a protest in Columbus, Ohio (one of the largest Somali resettlement sites in the US) in support of Somalis in South Africa and against the government there.
American Somalis should tell Obama to put pressure on the African National Congress to be more welcoming when he visits there later this month, after all that’s what the Rainbow Nation idea was all about. Right?
Also, today, it has been reported that the man considered the father of this model socialist government, 94-year-old Nelson Mandela, has been hospitalized in Johannesburg.
Hamain Ismail of Columbus holds the Somali flag during a march on the North Side before attending speeches about the mistreatment of Somalis in South Africa. Local Somalis gathered in the parking lot of the former Value City Department Store on Innis Road to call attention to the situation. Eric Albrecht | DISPATCH
Update June 21st: South Africa no longer the number one most desired country for asylum seekers, gee, I wonder why! Here.
Update June 14th: Some humor about the Obama trip hereat my other blog. Minnesota Somalis protest in solidarity with brothers in S.A. here.
Update June 13th: Obama family trip to South Africa later this month to cost US taxpayers $60-$100 million! (here). There is more! No safari! Sniper team nixed (snipers for wild animals that might eat the Obamas), here.
Update June 11th: South African Muslim lawyers want Obama arrested when he gets to the country later this month, hereat Creeping Sharia.
Update! See this interesting turn of events as American Somalis protest in solidarity, here.
We had learned previously that Barack had been inspired during his college years by the anti-apartheid movement of Nelson Mandela (his first political cause!) and I expect they are going to South Africa once again (or at least Michelle is going a second time, remember the expensive 2011 trip!) to extoll the virtues of the socialist Rainbow Nation.
You can bet the African National Congress is going to hide their refugee problems when the Obama’s arrive.
Somalis protest xenophobia (they call it xenophobia because everyone involved is the same race, this is black on black violence).
Members of the Somali community in South Africa have marched to parliament in Cape Town to protest against recent attacks on foreigners.
Three Somalis have been killed this month and the Somali government has requested the South African authorities to do more to protect their nationals. [We learned yesterday that tens of thousands of Somalis are going home to Somalia—ed]
About 200 people took part in the protest, holding a banner reading: “Everyone is a foreigner somewhere.”
Correspondents say xenophobic attacks have increased recently.
Some of the protesters accused the authorities of not doing enough to prevent attack on foreigners, especially Somalis, or prosecute those responsible.
Two Somali brothers were allegedly hacked to death with an axe in the northern Limpopo province on Thursday night.
Last week, Abdi Nasr Mahmoud was stoned to death in Port Elizabeth.
Mohamed Aden Osman told the BBC that criminals saw Somalis as “soft targets”.
Someone should tell Barack and Michelle that Mandela’s Rainbow Nation is a myth.
….some believe the African National Congress (ANC) government has become distracted by other things.
In May 2008 international newspapers carried the horrific image of Ernesto Nhamuave – a Mozambican man who was “necklaced” – torched by a marauding mob – simply for being a foreigner.
The 35-year-old father of three later died of his injuries.
It resembled the appalling violence during the struggle against white minority rule.
During last year’s xenophobic violence the clashes were between black Africans: locals and those considered outsiders.
New readers: You can learn more about the Rainbow Nation mythology and South Africa’s treatment of refugees in our archives, here. There is growing pressure on western countries to begin resettling South Africa’s refugee over flow.
It’s just not like what you envision refugees do. We have this notion, based on puff-pieces written in the mainstream media, that refugees come to America or are granted asylum, are eternally grateful, work their butts off and settle into American life. Actually, LOL! readers here at RRW might not have that vision, but the average American does. So, this little bit in the middle of another story about the Iranian rights activists (the supposed good guys) bopping back and forth to Turkey was informative.
Kouhyar Goodarzi
The article in Euronewsis about a blogger, described as a human rights activist, Kouhyar Goodarzi, who is expecting to be granted asylum in the US.
He has been a refugee since the winter, and is waiting for his request for asylum, lodged with the UN High Commission for Refugees, to be accepted.
[….]
Kouhyar intends to rebuild his nest in the United States after his asylum application has been accepted.
And, he plans to keep up his activism from “his nest” in America!
Expelled from university in Tehran where he was studying aeronautics, he wants to continue his studies and, while pursuing his professional activities, keep up his activism.
Then there is his friend, Hossein Salmanzadeh, who had already been a refugee in the US, didn’t like it (says he couldn’t find work) who hopped on back to Turkey and is now shopping for asylum in Europe. This does not pass the smell test!
Hossein Salmanzadeh took the first pictures of his friend Kouhyar Goodarzi upon his arrival in Ankara.
A former photographer for the national Iranian news agency, Fars, Salmanzadeh fled four years ago, after being accused of selling photographs of post-electoral events in 2009 to foreign media.
“The government can punish me, or maybe kill me. Because the government said you are a spy, a Mossad spy, a CIA spy. Because you send pictures to other agencies. Sometimes I get a message ‘you can come back. You will only, have to go to jail for one week, do an interview on TV then you can have a good and enjoyable life’. I can’t do it!”
Salmanzadeh was a refugee once in the United States, but he could not find work. Having returned to Turkey, he hopes to be given asylum in Europe.[So how persecuted was he?—-ed]
Turkey only provides temporary refugee status to non-European asylum seekers, relying on the UNHCR to organise their transit to a third country.
