Foreign shop-owners in Pretoria on edge ahead of ‘anti-foreigner’ march
Foreign shop-owners in Pretoria were on edge on Wednesday evening‚ with many abandoning their shops as the ‘anti-foreigners’ march planned for Friday loomed. In Nellmapius‚ near Mamelodi‚ all but one shop had been abandoned with owners taking what they could. This came as looting escalated earlier in the week in Atteridgeville and Lotus Gardens, with houses occupied by foreigners in Pretoria West being torched. Somalian Hassan Isse Mohamed‚ 29‚ was the last remaining foreign shop-owner in the township‚ with faith in the support of his neighbours. "I have very supportive neighbours and they have promised to fight with me‚" he said. The married father of two has run the Madiba Shop on Odirile Street for almost 10 years and has built a strong bond with the community. "What we were taught at school about the ubuntu country of [Nelson] Mandela is totally opposite of what we are experiencing in SA‚" he said. His first encounter with a looting mob was during a service delivery protest in 2...
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