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South African big business weighs into crime debate
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South African big business weighs into crime debate
South African companies have joined a chorus of protest about rising crime in the continent’s economic powerhouse, tarnishing once-rosy relations between the government and big business.
The country’s second largest bank First National Bank axed a high-profile campaign that criticised President Thabo Mbeki’s record on crime, amid reports it was bullied by the government.
The move unleashed a heated debate about the strength of South Africa’s democracy and prompted other firms and business leaders to ask the government for tougher action to stem a wave of violent crime that is hurting business confidence.
About 50 people are murdered in South Africa every day according to official statistics released in September – slightly fewer than a year earlier. But carjackings and cash-in-transit heists have shot up.
Companies say crime is damaging business as determined thieves even blow up cash machines to steal money. It may also deter foreign investors, especially after the high-profile killing of world-renowned historian David Rattray last month.
A recent survey of medium to large private businesses showed optimism in South Africa fell last year, mainly due to crime, with nearly all 200 businesses surveyed saying violent crime hurt productivity in 2006. The South African Chamber of Business said yesterday business and investor confidence would suffer “irreparable damage” if the government did not clamp down on crime.
Mbeki, who is due to give his annual state of the nation speech on Friday, angered many South Africans last month when he said in an interview crime was not out of control. Opposition parties and the media accuse him of being out of touch.
“Mbeki acts like a man living somewhere else than in a country whose people are dying,” said political commentator Justice Malala in an editorial in the Sowetan newspaper.
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