Obtaining ‘Peace’, Searching for Justice: Evaluating Civil Society and Local Government Responses to Xenophobia in Alexandra

Abstract

While local government and civil society responses to the May 2008 xenophobic violence in Alexandra were relatively effective at achieving their goal of peace and stability in the township, the article argues that larger structural issues remained almost untouched. The Alexandra Vukuzenzele Crisis Committee (AVCC), an affiliate of the Anti-Privatisation Forum (APF), hinted at a completely different approach to dealing with the crisis than the other organizations discussed, but was not successful at making strides towards achieving its goal—‘attack[ing] capitalism not foreigners!’. Placing hope in the ARP, leaders (including those in the APF) have failed to undertake a long-term programme to alleviate the social conditions such as poverty and unemployment that social movements and other analysts declare are the primary cause of the violence.