Makumbirofa Farms — Insight & Commentary

South Africa •

Scenes from xenophobic violence on South African streets. © Getty Images

• Faith & Society

Is The South African Church Afraid To Speak Against Violence?

Silence in the face of evil is complicity.

By Collen Makumbirofa • Makumbirofa Farms

Foreign nationals contributing to the economy and heritage of South Africa are facing violence, hatred and xenophobia — orchestrated by minorities and their sponsors. And many South Africans are being swept into the storm. In KwaZulu-Natal, South Africans have been mistaken for foreigners, harassed, and beaten. This is not a foreign problem. This is everyone’s problem.

This is the moment we should be hearing urgent public press releases and unequivocal condemnation from the South African Church. Yet the pews remain silent. Is the Church afraid of being targeted by the violence? Or can it not even muster the smallest act of spiritual courage — a prayer for peace?

The South African Church must stand up. Or is part of it silently supporting this campaign of violence in our midst?

Let us be absolutely clear: foreign nationals are not responsible for the poverty, hunger, and unemployment that afflicts South Africa. Massive unemployment was not caused by foreigners. The economic devastation that so many families face today was largely born from the COVID-19 shutdown and deep structural failures that long predate any migrant worker’s arrival on South African soil.

The majority of South Africans are not xenophobic. They are not hate-filled. But there is a calculated campaign — an agenda — to brainwash and politicise ordinary citizens. These outbreaks of violence are not spontaneous. They are sponsored. They are organised. They are the work of sadists who profit from chaos and division.

These outbreaks are not spontaneous — they are sponsored, organised, and the work of those who profit from chaos.

That is precisely why everyone who cares about the soul of this nation must stand up now. That is why the South African Church cannot afford silence. The voice of faith — a voice that has moved mountains in this country before — must thunder again.

Africans must learn to share and live together in difficult times. The issue of undocumented immigrants must be handled by police and immigration authorities — professionals bound by law — not by every vigilante who picks up a stone. There is a legal system. There is a constitutional framework. Use it.

I also call upon the South African government to document undocumented immigrants with urgency, compassion, and Ubuntu. These are human beings — men, women, and children. All human life is sacred, document or no document. They deserve not cruelty, but understanding. Their stories of desperation and survival deserve to be heard.

Hatred, evil, xenophobia, and sadism must not drive the policies of the South African government. Illegal immigrants can be legalised. Processes exist. Will can be found. What is lacking is the moral courage to act with humanity rather than with fear.

The real focus must be on creating jobs, rebuilding economies, and encouraging neighbouring nations to rapidly improve conditions so that their people can return home — proudly, voluntarily, and with many South African friends beside them who also seek opportunity across the continent.

It is time to rise above selfishness, lies, violence, and wickedness. It is time for every voice of conscience — and above all, the voice of the Church — to be heard.

“The violence of the wicked will destroy them, because they refuse to do justice.”

Proverbs 21:7

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CM

Collen Makumbirofa

Founder, Makumbirofa Farms
www.makumbirofafarms.co.za • admin@makumbirofafarms.co.za