More bad news from South Africa

The murder of reggae superstar Lucky Dube in a botched hijacking in Johannesburg highlights the fact that crime is out of control in South Africa.

Our government has claimed that this is not the case, and that complaints about crime are just the racist imaginings of unreconstructed whites, upset at losing their privileges. Today the tune was slightly different:

“The ANC condemns in the possible strongest terms, this barbaric and senseless killing by people who have no respect for life. We urge law-enforcement agencies to act promptly in hunting down these nefarious, ruthless criminals who have robbed the Dube family of a father and a son, and a musical icon of all times to South Africa, Africa and the world at large.”

How long will this change of heart last, before they play the race card again to hide their failings?

I first saw Lucky Dube play at a concert at Ellis Park stadium in, I think, 1991. I’ve forgotten what the concert was called, but it was the first real attempt in South Africa to bring white and black together at a music concert by having acts that would appeal to both.

It was my first real taste of what a multiracial society could be like, and when Lucky sang “come together as one” it had real power.

Let’s take a moment to remember that feeling:

Pitso Tsibolane has his own thoughts here, as well as memories of seeing Lucky play:

“The question “senzeni na?” is a desperate plea for help for POWER, INTERVENTION, HELP or anything beyond human power to ease a particular burden. That is how i felt when i woke up today, HELPLESS upon hearing the news that crime has cost South Africa dearly, robbers/thugs/cowards/assassins/murderers had inflicted a mortal wound on the rest of SA and the world by killing Lucky Dube!”

I get accused of being overly negative about the beloved country, but how do you stay positive when the news is just so relentlessly bad?

Who’s going to die next?

I’ll be watching the rugby with mixed feelings. Really, is there any reason to be proud of being South African? I did feel proud once, in the mid-90s, but not any more