Islamophobic hate speech on Durban walls and sign boards a cause for concern

Community leaders have condemned anti-Islamic graffiti that appeared in public and private spaces in Durban at the weekend.

Mahomed Essa, chairperson of the North Beach CPF, laid a charge of incitement of violence, intimidation and hate speech at the Durban Central police station after the messages were written on signboards and walls.

The messages were written on walls in Sol Harris Road, Gordon Road and a mosque in John McIntyre Road as well as a signboard at Carpendale Park.

Essa said, based on the writing and use of a red pen, it was likely one person was responsible for the vandalism that was conducted between late Saturday and the early hours of Sunday.

“We had anti-foreigner sentiment last week and now these comments are made, which suggests some agenda. There was also a DA congress at the weekend and it seems someone wants to trigger some religious and racial debate.”

He said he was liaising with police and security to catch the culprits.

“We are busy with CCTV footage and we expect to make an arrest within the next 24 hours.

“We have had isolated incidents of vandalism and public nuisance behaviour in the past, however, graffiti containing hate speech and inflammatory religious messaging of this nature is extremely rare in our area.

“While I don’t want to create panic or speculation by suggesting there is an organised pattern, without evidence, we are concerned enough to increase vigilance and ensure all incidents are properly investigated.”

He said the community was concerned by the anti-Muslim sentiment and had called for increased patrols and security around religious facilities.

“From my perspective, behaviour like this is often driven by ignorance, intolerance, provocation and attempts to create fear or division within communities that have historically coexisted peacefully. North Beach is a diverse community made up of people from different religions, races and backgrounds, and we remain committed to protecting that unity.

“I also want to make it clear that the North Beach CPF condemns any form of hate speech, discrimination, intimidation or incitement of violence against any religion or race. We urge the public to remain calm, avoid spreading unverified information and allow law enforcement to conduct a thorough investigation.”

South African Muslim Network representative Faisal Suliman said while this latest Islamophobic incident “was consistent with an ongoing campaign by Zionists to further justify the genocide of Palestinians and support for Israel”, it could also be attributed to the socio-economic and political landscape.

“There have been increasing attacks on Muslims, from minor incidents to actual assaults, and irrespective of it being serious, these are in contravention of our country’s laws.

“By virtue of our Muslim attire, we stand out and are perceived to be in great numbers, and this is one of the perceptions regarding Bangladeshi, Pakistani and Somali Muslims — that they are taking local jobs, given our country’s unemployment, and this causes friction. They are also part of the general target group for the xenophobia that is going on.

“Furthermore, added to this is that we are in election season and politicians are going to climb on board on the public sentiment against foreigners, and you see political parties already aligning themselves to demonise and repatriate them.”

Morningside councillor Ernest Smith condemned the “wilful and malicious damage to private and public property”.

Smith said he would open a charge of vandalism.

“This should not be accepted or tolerated by anyone. We, as South Africans, should be working with one another to build our country to its best potential, not divide our people along religious, racial or any other means. I encourage anyone with information to come forward to bring those responsible to justice.”