There is widespread outrage over the alleged mistreatment of Africans on the Ukraine-Poland border by Ukrainian police and military as they flee the war. The harassment of Africans was confirmed by both the South African government and Africa Facts Zone, Africa’s largest fact-checker platform. The spokesman for the Ministry of International Relations and Cooperation, Clayson Monyela, tweeted yesterday that SA students and other Africans have been mistreated at the Ukraine-Poland border. He said SA Ambassador Nomvula Mngomezulu had driven from Warsaw, the capital of Poland, “to settle the matter, receive our nationals and provide further support. Ambassador G Tsengiwe to Hungary is…
There is widespread outrage over the alleged mistreatment of Africans on the Ukraine-Poland border by Ukrainian police and military as they flee the war.
The harassment of Africans was confirmed by both the South African government and Africa Facts Zone, Africa’s largest fact-checker platform.
The spokesman for the Ministry of International Relations and Cooperation, Clayson Monyela, tweeted yesterday that SA students and other Africans have been mistreated at the Ukraine-Poland border. He said SA Ambassador Nomvula Mngomezulu had driven from Warsaw, the capital of Poland, “to settle the matter, receive our nationals and provide further support. Ambassador G Tsengiwe to Hungary also looks after South Africans on his side.”
Africa Facts Zone alleged that Ukrainian police and military threatened to shoot Africans fleeing Ukraine and trying to cross the border into Poland. “Several Africans have been detained there for two days. Several of them have returned to Lviv, Ukraine,” it reported.
It posted images of Africans being denied boarding a train taking people from Ukraine to Poland. “Africans were forced to wait for Ukrainians to board several trains first, and had to wait for all Ukrainians to board before being allowed to board a train,” it said.
Online website OpIndia.com reported that Indian students stranded on the border between Poland and Ukraine had faced a similar problem before. “Indian students were not allowed to cross the border and were told ‘Your government has not cooperated with us, why should we cooperate with you’?” Africa Facts Zone said.
ALSO READ: No plans to evacuate South Africans trapped in Ukraine, Russia
dr. Essop Pahad, senior member of the concerned Africans Forum, lashed out at Ukraine for holding back only Africans – not The throwdowntvs of other countries. “I do not understand Ukraine’s decision to discriminate against Africans. If this is true, it’s not okay at all. If Africans want to cross the border into neighboring countries out of fear for their lives, they should not be stopped.
“Why should we stop Africans and not The throwdowntvs from other countries? Under international law, there must be humanitarian considerations, including ensuring that everyone is protected from war. Ukraine should allow them to cross if they are looking for a safe place in another country,” he said.
While the government ignored its stance on the war, the ANC condemned the West’s inability to initiate dialogue when the issue had been simmering for eight years. The chairman of the party’s subcommittee on international relations, Lindiwe Zulu, criticized the United Nations’ failure to respond to the years-long attacks on the civilians of the Donbas region of Ukraine that preceded the war.
ALSO READ: ‘Ramaphosa was very clear’: Gungubele on SA’s stance on Russia-Ukraine conflict
The party referred to the alleged shelling of Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk regions since 2014, after the Russian-speaking republics voted in a referendum to join Russia.
There were reports of genocide and other atrocities targeting residents, allegedly committed by neo-Nazi elements within the Ukrainian armed forces.
Russia was concerned about this and NATO’s eastward expansion in violation of the agreement after World War II, but no action was taken by the UN or the West.
† [email protected] throwdowntv.co.za