The country of South Africa has a number of critical problems. The program of apartheid was a terrible national stain on the country. You don’t practice a program like that, and then, when you stop, find that there are no repercussions from what has been done.
The races were divided putting the blacks, colored, and Indians into separate communities. When apartheid ended, these communities still existed and in many cases it was impossible for people to extricate themselves from the divided communities. Even though legally they could move into the major cities, they could not afford to make the move since they did not have much value in the houses that were in the settlements. Who would want to buy houses that were poor construction and in many cases did not have running water or electricity. It made for a kind of de facto segregation.
Fortunately better quality construction was accomplished in many of the cities and today there are areas where the Blacks, Indians, and Colored are moving in and finding better jobs as a result. In the city of Richards Bay where we lived this is the case. It is still startling to go to the bus terminal and see blacks by the thousands boarding the buses to go home to their settlements.
Another closely related problem is unemployment. Some of this is the result of a poorer system of education that was given to the segregated races. In some ways, the Indians must have reaped some benefits within their culture because there are many Indians who are doing better financially. Unemployment brings other problems with it. Crime is a serious factor when people can’t find jobs. They conclude that if no one cares it must be their right to go out and take what they need. Human life is not valued and many of the thieves will just kill in the process of robbing. It seemed that every family that we knew had someone close who had been robbed and killed.
Politicians have difficulty relating to major cultural problems. It is far easier to make promises that can’t be kept and hope that when it comes time to vote again, the public will forget the promises that were not kept.
It is hard to think that there could be so many problems in a country that is so beautiful. The landscapes, waterfalls, forests, mountains, and shorelines all cry out, “South Africa is a beautiful place.” At the same time, people are constantly warning others to be careful about driving or walking at night, frequenting certain places, or leaving the safe confines of the home for any reason at night.
Pressure has been put on companies to establish broader hiring policies. This means that this pressure will cause companies to lower their hiring standards which will ultimately lead to less efficiency in the manufacturing sector.
When someone loses a job to a less qualified individual, there is a tendency to blame the replacement worker rather than the inadequate system that caused the firing. There is also the problem that many people who lose jobs turn to drink and drugs to pour oil on the wounds.
The sad thing is that my observation of South Africans at work brought a favorable reaction. Sales people, Service people, and management all seemed to have good skills, fantastic outlooks, and efficient people relationships. It was a pleasure to go into retail stores, service stations, and other service places. There always was a desire to please, a willingness to help, and the energy to complete a successful transaction.
South Africa is always one administration away from a disastrous Zimbabwe like experience. It would be very sad to see that happen. Hopefully the quality of the people will keep it from coming to pass. It will take some creativity to solve the problems. It can be done and hopefully will be done. The people of South Africa deserve better than they have received from their political leaders down through the years.