On 20 June 2024, the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria commemorated #WorldRefugeeDay by hosting a community leaders’ dialogue at thein Southern Sun Hotel, Johannesburg. In line with the theme of World Refugee Day for the year 2024, ‘solidarity with refugees’, the event was organised to enhance the role of community leaders in promoting solidarity with refugees. A total of 37 participants drawn from refugee and other migrant organisations and refugee host communities attended the event.
The dialogue underscored the reasons why community leaders should use their influence in their communities to prevent xenophobic discrimination and violence. One of the main reasons was that community leaders’ indifference and lack of active involvement in the face of xenophobic discrimination and violence in their communities perpetuate xenophobia. In contrast, when community leaders actively promote solidarity with refugees, asylum seekers and other migrants (migrants), they discourage members of their communities from engaging in xenophobic discrimination and violence.
The key insights from the community dialogue include the following:
- Although socio-economic inequality may in some instances contribute to the incidence of xenophobic discrimination and violence, it is the political mobilisation of xenophobia that plays a key role in the incidence of xenophobic violence. It was highlighted that socio-economic inequality does not justify xenophobic violence and discrimination.
- Extensive and coordinated efforts should be exerted to break the cycle of xenophobic violence. This includes engaging community leaders and public figures and leveraging their influential position to strengthen solidarity with refugees, asylum seekers, and migrants.
- Capacity building initiatives are necessary to enhance the role of community leaders in maintaining harmonious communities by instilling the spirit of Ubuntu into their communities, dispelling anti-migrant stereotypes, and intervening to stop xenophobic violence.
The Centre, through its Migrants’ Rights Unit, will continue to advocate for the rights of refugees, asylum seekers, and all migrants, and for solidarity with them and the host communities.
The dialogue was made possible through the financial support of the European Union Delegation in South Africa.
For further information, please contact:
Tel: +27 (0)12 420 3151
victoria.amaechi@up.ac.za
