Kevlar Kev spends the night at a refugee camp
Xenophobic attacks in and around Durban have been making local, national and International news, tearing our rainbow nation reputation to shreds, undermining the idea of Ubuntu and our aspiration for an inclusive society.
Today it is “foreigners”, who will it be tomorrow?
Kevlar Kev volunteered to head down to a refugee camp in Durban to see what he could do to help. He shares his experience with us:
"It's a little after midnight at the refugee camp in Chatsworth. Right now over 120 Mozambicans, brought here in police trucks, are registering, being issued with blankets and told to find a place to sleep.
Already the eight marquees are full, so these new arrivals will have to sleep under the stars with their children, some just babies. Many don't know where the rest of their families are.
Mostly young, strong men are here. They are the bricklayers, the petrol attendants, the builders, the artists, the friends and colleagues who have worked with us and alongside us in our everyday lives.
Each and every one of them came to look for greener pastures, and nearly all of them are supporting families back home.
We are surrounded by a steel fence, security and an ever-present police force relying on intelligence and patrolling to keep the area safe.
There are small fires burning to keep those still awake warm on this cold April night, though the wood supplies are dwindling.
Under the marquees there is no space left to walk. People are huddled together amongst a few possessions of fridges, mattresses and the odd TV.
Those who managed to bring such items with them are few and far between. Almost everybody who is here fled here, with no time to gather their things, other than what they could carry. ID documents were mostly 'confiscated' by the same people who ransacked their homes, with no regard for their small children or their plight.
At dinner time it's the local community who shine. Members of the Revolution MC Biking Club amongst other concerned and caring individuals have prepared and distributed enough food for three meals a day. Women and children eat first.
I joined the efforts in the mammoth task of getting everybody a warm plate of food, and with every plate, bowl or cup I handed over I genuinely had to put on a happy face and give with the love with which it was made, though inside my heart had broken a thousand times and I had to suppress the urge to burst out crying.
Yet somehow, through these volunteers and the kindness of the people around them, we've been able to at least pass on the message that it is not us; it is not the vast majority of Durbanites who have done this to them. We have shown them compassion, love and kindness to the best of our ability in this their time of need.
Yet these refugees, who have nothing, are the strong ones. I've seen nothing but people helping people, smiles, and laughter, even if that's mostly to keep the kids from knowing that life as they know it, in beautiful South Africa, the land of their dreams, the place of Madiba, has come to a tragic and sudden end.
The Malawian government has been the first to make plans to rescue its citizens. God help those who are going back to Zimbabwe and other places where they fear for their lives when they get back, for having fled in the first place.
Durban is weeping. And we are leaking the very people we have relied upon, employed and befriended."
Below, some photos Kev took while visiting the refugee camp:
Refuge centre
They're desperate to leave SA #RefugeeCamp
Queues for repatriation
1000 refugees and two toilets?
This is where heartbreak lives #RefugeeCamp
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Innocent kids at the #RefugeeCamp
Bless whoever brought the kids things to do #RefugeeCamp
Van packed full, I'm off to spend the night at the refugee centre. The good people of Durban are vehemently against the hatred and perhaps the tide will turn. Thanks to Glenridge Church and The Rock
It's the Revolution Biker Club of Chatsworth ensuring all the refugees are fed three times a day. These guys are off the charts with their love and respect for their fellow Africans
The late night registration of Mozambicans continues. Nobody who comes here has any ID or any possessions.
Today there will be a march led by various sectors of government from Curries Fountain as a stand against xenophobia, as an expression of commitment to ending this kind of violence and to protecting lives," said Thami Ngwenya, a spokesperson for the KwaZulu-Natal government.
Come down and show your support!