South Africa's ruling party has condemned Canada's 'racist' decision in granting refugee status to Brandon Huntley, a man who claims he was the target of repeated assaults in South Africa because he is white.
Huntley is an unemployed 31-year old who formerly worked as a water sprinkler salesman in SA. He obtained a temporary permit to work as a carnival attendant in Canada. When the permit expired in 2006, he remained in Canada illegally.
According to Huntley he was mugged and stabbed on numerous occasions in South Africa by attackers who called him "white dog" and "settler' during the alleged assaults.
The attacks are purely Huntley's say-so, because there is no record of them in SA - he never laid any charges with the police.
Several residents in the Cape Town suburb of Mowbray where Huntley lived say they have never heard of anyone being called a "white dog" or a "settler."
South Africans who claim they know Mr Huntley on a personal basis have described him as 'a conman.' They claim he had a plan to stay on in Canada after his temporary work visa expired and had decided to play on popular prejudices about South African crime in order to press his case for refugee status.
A South African radio talk-show host told The Times that “The truth will soon come out. He came out with this cock-and-bull story and probably never expected to receive this publicity. There are no records of any attacks and he admits he never reported any of them.”
Ronnie Mamoepa, a spokesman for SA's Home Affairs department said the SA government was "disgusted" by the Canadian ruling and "preposterous claims" by Mr Huntley.
Brian Sokutu of the ANC said: “We find the claim by Huntley to have been attacked seven times by Africans due to his skin colour without any police intervention sensational and alarming. Canada’s reasoning for granting Huntley a refugee status can only serve to perpetuate racism.”
Given the political implications of this case and the rather sketchy circumstances surrounding Huntley's application, it is all the more surprising that Refugee Board member, William Davis, appeared to have no problem believing that Huntley had been persecuted because of his race, as opposed to simply being a victim of crime.
Davis went further and enlarged the canvas by suggesting that South Africa had failed to protect its white citizens from robberies and muggings - a situation he depicted in alarmist terms as the "persecution" of whites by "African South Africans."
There are a number of misconceptions behind the scenario painted by Davis. Crime in South Africa is a serious problem, but whites aren't the primary victims.
The South African Institute of Race Relations (SAIRR) pointed out that "... the vast majority of the victims of violent crime are black." SAIRR further noted that there was no "general pattern of racial attacks on white South Africans by black South Africans."
Davis said that Mr Huntley would "stand out like a sore thumb" in any part of S.Africa because of his skin color - a rather odd statement considering that there are more than 4 million whites in South Africa.
He also said that Huntley would be unable to find employment in SA because affirmative action favors blacks. Statistics paint a different picture. The unemployment rate for blacks in South Africa is 27.9%, compared to whites at 4.6%. Moreover 61% of South Africa's top corporate executives are white men.
The South African government has announced that it will seek a review of the Canadian Refugee Board's decision.
Globe and Mail article - here.
Guardian article - here.
SA Mail and Guardian - here.
Huntley is an unemployed 31-year old who formerly worked as a water sprinkler salesman in SA. He obtained a temporary permit to work as a carnival attendant in Canada. When the permit expired in 2006, he remained in Canada illegally.
Huntley
According to Huntley he was mugged and stabbed on numerous occasions in South Africa by attackers who called him "white dog" and "settler' during the alleged assaults.
The attacks are purely Huntley's say-so, because there is no record of them in SA - he never laid any charges with the police.
Several residents in the Cape Town suburb of Mowbray where Huntley lived say they have never heard of anyone being called a "white dog" or a "settler."
South Africans who claim they know Mr Huntley on a personal basis have described him as 'a conman.' They claim he had a plan to stay on in Canada after his temporary work visa expired and had decided to play on popular prejudices about South African crime in order to press his case for refugee status.
A South African radio talk-show host told The Times that “The truth will soon come out. He came out with this cock-and-bull story and probably never expected to receive this publicity. There are no records of any attacks and he admits he never reported any of them.”
Ronnie Mamoepa, a spokesman for SA's Home Affairs department said the SA government was "disgusted" by the Canadian ruling and "preposterous claims" by Mr Huntley.
Brian Sokutu of the ANC said: “We find the claim by Huntley to have been attacked seven times by Africans due to his skin colour without any police intervention sensational and alarming. Canada’s reasoning for granting Huntley a refugee status can only serve to perpetuate racism.”
Given the political implications of this case and the rather sketchy circumstances surrounding Huntley's application, it is all the more surprising that Refugee Board member, William Davis, appeared to have no problem believing that Huntley had been persecuted because of his race, as opposed to simply being a victim of crime.
Davis went further and enlarged the canvas by suggesting that South Africa had failed to protect its white citizens from robberies and muggings - a situation he depicted in alarmist terms as the "persecution" of whites by "African South Africans."
There are a number of misconceptions behind the scenario painted by Davis. Crime in South Africa is a serious problem, but whites aren't the primary victims.
The South African Institute of Race Relations (SAIRR) pointed out that "... the vast majority of the victims of violent crime are black." SAIRR further noted that there was no "general pattern of racial attacks on white South Africans by black South Africans."
Davis said that Mr Huntley would "stand out like a sore thumb" in any part of S.Africa because of his skin color - a rather odd statement considering that there are more than 4 million whites in South Africa.
He also said that Huntley would be unable to find employment in SA because affirmative action favors blacks. Statistics paint a different picture. The unemployment rate for blacks in South Africa is 27.9%, compared to whites at 4.6%. Moreover 61% of South Africa's top corporate executives are white men.
The South African government has announced that it will seek a review of the Canadian Refugee Board's decision.
Globe and Mail article - here.
Guardian article - here.
SA Mail and Guardian - here.
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