In a situation where, according to official figures, the numbers of displaced people may have reached 100,000 and are increasing, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies is calling for sustained humanitarian action to bring vital emergency assistance to the victims of recent attacks on foreigners in South Africa.
“The situation is getting worse, not better. We must make sure that the needs of people forced out of their homes by these attacks, often with nothing more than the clothes on their backs, are met now, and for the foreseeable future,” says Françoise Le Goff, Head of the International Federation’s Zone Office for Southern Africa, in Johannesburg. “It is cold and raining and families, often with young children, are sleeping on the ground, under simple tents, putting their health at risk.”
Since the beginning of the attacks on 11 May, the South African Red Cross Society (SARCS) has deployed some 150 staff and volunteers in more than 30 sites and temporary shelters around the country where displaced people have found refuge. The SARCS has also set up a tracing service for missing family members, in collaboration with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
“The Red Cross has been tirelessly distributing essential food, hygiene articles and clothing to the victims of this violence,” explains David Stephens, Acting Secretary General of the South African Red Cross. “Many of them are in total distress, and we are also providing psychosocial support, as well as first aid services. We are referring the sick and wounded to clinics and hospitals. We will remain active, in close collaboration with other stakeholders, as long as we are needed.”
In an outpouring of generosity from the South African population, the equivalent of more than one million Swiss francs has been collected in a national appeal launched by the SARCS. The International Federation has released 300,000 Swiss francs from its Disaster Response Emergency Fund (US$ 290,000 / Eur 150,000) to support the South African Red Cross operation to initially help some 30,000 displaced people in sites located around Johannesburg and Pretoria, in Western Cape and in KwaZulu Natal provinces.
“We are focusing on the humanitarian imperative, in a sensitive context in terms of urgent needs and security, and we believe the situation requires immediate action to avoid more violence and more deaths,” notes John Roche, Federation Operations coordinator for Africa, in Geneva. “We are committed to continue our collaborative approach with government departments who hold the primary responsibility for the coordination of this operation, and to continue our support to the South Africa Red Cross, to meet the immediate needs of the displaced, countrywide.”
The influx of people is also becoming critical for neighbouring countries, with some 32,000 people having fled into Mozambique, where the Mozambique Red Cross is providing emergency assistance to these returnees, currently housed in a transit centre at Beluluane, on the outskirts of Maputo.
More than 1,000 people have also crossed the border into Malawi and 123 into Zimbabwe where the Red Cross Societies are also providing them with assistance. Malawi is preparing to receive 2,500 returnees in the coming days.