Zimbabweans Flee South Africa Attacks and Return Home With Nothing

Thousands of Zimbabweans are returning home after renewed attacks against foreign nationals in South Africa forced families to abandon their homes, belongings, jobs and businesses. Some returnees say they escaped with only one bag of clothes. Others left behind refrigerators, sofas, bicycles, tools and property accumulated over many years. More than 21,000 Zimbabweans have reportedly been assisted through the government repatriation programme, while thousands more have returned through their own arrangements. In this Zimwaves TV news roundup, we examine the human cost of anti-foreigner violence in South Africa and ask whether migrants are being blamed for unemployment, crime, poor service delivery and government failures they did not create. We also ask whether Zimbabwe is prepared to provide returning citizens with jobs, identity documents, school placements, business funding and genuine reintegration opportunities. Other stories include the IMF’s review of Zimbabwe’s economic programme, pressure on Mthuli Ncube to abolish IMTT, suspected inside involvement in Harare council robberies, Sudan’s peace negotiations and unpaid Ebola response workers in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Subscribe to Zimwaves TV for Zimbabwean, South African and African news with independent analysis and commentary. Hashtags #SouthAfrica #Zimbabweans #ZimwavesTV