Refugee camps have been set up in at least five sites in the Western Cape alone, including one less than ten minutes drive from my home. A friend of mine has been volunteering there since the weekend, making food and distributing donated goods to more than 1500 people (a conservative estimate). Churches, community organizations and NGOs have all thrown themselves into the relief effort ... but there is NO official presence beyond a police patrol. No one is organizing anything - and we have the entire SA Navy just a few kms down the coast ...
And just guess where our President is? After a 'rare televised appearance' on Sunday evening in which he lambasted the 'shameful acts' - two weeks after the violence broke out, he has now flown off to Japan!!! He's gone to a conference called - wait for it - Towards a Vibrant Africa: A Continent of Hope and Opportunity. Unbelievable ... he can fly halfway round the world but he couldn't be bothered to take a trip to the townships. If this had happened in Mandela's day (which is doubtful) he would have been in the townships the very next day, talking to the people. He would have been on television soon after that, addressing the nation.
Do we really have to put up with Mbeki's non-leadership for another year?
Blog here has loads of info on the community reaction to the crisis, and see this amazing Slideshow too, from News 24.
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