Everyone who is not part of the ruling class and has understood just a little of life knows that police won´t help you, if you have problems. To organize is a necessary step to defend yourself, your community,… So what about a vigilante group?
Three and a half years ago some locals in an South African town founded Operation Wanya Tsotsi , a vigilante group that shall protect their neighborhood from crimes, small thieves,… It´s not a white vigilante group, defending the “property” of the rich. It is a group of black Africans, defending the property of the poor population. Further they also work against violence on women which is good.
The group seems to be quite popular. Their Facebook-page has over 14.000 likes, also Aljazeera broadcasts positively about them.
One thing stands out obviously. If they catch thieves they whip them. Also suspects are treated brutally. A necessary mean to emphasis their interests?
Of course thefts are a problem for the poor population in South Africa like they are everywhere, but who robs the people everyday?
It is imperialism that exploits the natural recourses, in this case diamonds, platin, uranium,… and the local population. This theft is much bigger and much more important. How much you are progressive can be measured by how much you recognize this and struggle against that.
At least from that what we could find by our researches Operation Wanya Tsotsi does not agitates against imperialism or it´s local servants, the South African bourgeois puppets.
Their slogan “taking back our streets” is good and collects a lot of people behind them which shows how much people understand that it is necessary to organize, but as long as they don’t challenge the main enemy of the South African people the slogan will be an empty phrase - more than that, it will be helpfully for imperialists to ensure "crime free" and peacefully" exploitation!
