The recent uproar between thee two political parties the National Freedom Party and the Inkatha Freedom Party in the KK hostels KwaDabeka Durban South Africa and the surrounding hostels, has caught media attention from all over the world.
The national freedom party(NFP) is the break away party of the Inkatha freedom party(IFP) formed in 2011 by the then former Chairperson of the IFP due to dissatisfaction within the party. It is mostly dominated by the younger generation which wanted change within the IFP because it felt it was more of a traditional party then a holistic party and that it's President Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi had to step because he has served his time in the party.
Before we iron out the issue of political intolerance in the hostels, one must briefly remind the public that political intolerance has been one of the major problems affecting our communities post democracy. the killing of 25 family members of the ANC at Shobashobane North of KwaZulu Natal and the never ending war between the ANC and the IFP in the early 90's are all examples of political intolerance in our communities and our country at large.
But why are we experiencing this pandemic 20 years post democracy?
I do not think there is a definite answer to the above question I have posed to myself and perhaps even the readers of this blog. we need to first scrutinise the type of communities that is usually found in many KZN hostels.Well to cut the long story short, these hostels are dominated by people coming from the northern KZN which covers the Zululand and UThungulu district municipalitie which are strong holds of the two political parties in question.
The first explanation is that these wars start in the rural areas where s these communities live and the scores are set in the hostels where there is not enough security or protection from the families as in the rural areas with which they live in.
The second explanation is that, there is a fight for the minimal resources that available for the people living in the hostels such as KK in KwaDabeka. It is important to note that these two political parties do not enjoy hegemony in the cabinet of KZN, hence a fight will somehow revolve for these resources as it is a known fact that most people in the hostels are living in poverty and yes most of them are unemployed.
What is it that is out there for us as Occupational therapists?
As occupational therapists we are well known for advocacy and activism more especially in our communities. we need to be aware of such ills that the communities and our clients face on a daily basis. It is also up to us to face this quagmire and come up with intervention strategies that will help alleviate political intolerance in the hostels and in the communities we serve.
As one exists this blog it should be noted that the author writes in his own views which are not sponsored by any political party.
Very interesting information you are providing. I think we need to look deeper into what OTs need to do... because citizenship, voting, participating in political parties are all occupations. Please discuss this further in another blog. Thank-you!
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