By GEORGE KAPINGIRI
18 December 2025- The culture of hijacked buildings in South Africa has become extremely scary. As a Congolese person, I am proud to be Congolese.
I have lived my entire life in South Africa, but I will never shed my Congolese identity for a South African one. I love being Congolese more than anything.
Because I was raised here, I used to generalize that South Africans were jealous of foreign nationals, especially African foreign nationals. I would often say that whenever South Africans wanted to blame someone for the misfortunes and problems in their country, the most convenient scapegoat was their African brothers and sisters.
In recent years, however, as I have paid closer attention to politics and the environment where I live, I have realized that South Africans are not xenophobic. These people are literally fighting for their own country. According to available data, 80% of the hijacked or semi‑hijacked buildings in the Johannesburg CBD… what I call “town”… are illegally occupied.
Their owners are present, but cannot assist them, and the buildings are being hijacked by foreign nationals. Most of these foreign nationals come from Central, West, or East Africa, and some from Southern Africa. It is a strange situation.
Why would someone come to another country, hijack a property that does not belong to them and then sublet it? Some buildings in town house up to a thousand people because of this subletting culture.
For me, I no longer see South Africans as xenophobic. I once viewed them that way, but in recent years I have begun to understand that they are not xenophobic at all.
This “hijacked” culture is breeding grounds for human trafficking and illegal trade of goods and people. It is not simply a matter of giving South Africans a reason to be angry; we should not blame them.
One thing is certain, if South Africa were to die today, you as a foreign national, could leave. South Africans cannot leave. This is their home and there is nowhere else for them to go. You can go back where can they go?
So let us not blame South Africans and call them xenophobic. Let them fight for their country.
At least they have the courage to fight for their country, unlike many of us who are in their country because we lack the courage to fight for our own.
(Note: Mr George Kapingiri shared this in his personal capacity and The Guardian Newspaper and its associates do not agree nor disagree with the content of this letter. So, whatever is written in this letter remains the views of the author and does not represent The Guardian Newspaper in anyway)
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