World Cup brings goals to our borders

One of the real and hopefully lasting benefits of the 2010 Fifa Soccer World Cup is that it has jolted the South African Government into action to do something about the sorry state of security along most of the country’s borders with its neighbouring states. The timing and highly publicised concern shown by the government, however, is somewhat ironic.

Suddenly the situation, despite numerous failed attempts in the past to bring the government to act, is so dire that it necessitated an on-the-spot inspection by the minister and Parliament's Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans.

On television last week, South Africans saw Minister Lindiwe Sisulu standing next to what is intended to be a border fence, but which in fact more closely resembled the broken and unkempt fence of a farm along the South African/Lesotho border.

The minister registered horror and apprehension and did her best to convince the South African public that drastic measures are to be taken and that the situation will improve dramatically.

Somehow, the South African public has heard this before and it is now up to the minister and the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) to prove the skeptics wrong.

It would be fascinating to ascertain how many times in the recent past civil society, agricultural organisations, non-goverrnmental organisations, individuals and other concerned institutions and groups have attempted to convey – in vain, or so it seems – to the authorities the desperate and shocking situation along South Africa’s borders. It even seems as if attempts by the South African Police Service, customs officials, and other elements of the security forces to try and convince their respective line functional and political masters of the severity of the situation have also failed.

Broken fences, stolen fences, missing fences, fences with openings so big a lorry could drive through; neglected, stolen and missing monitoring equipment; large-scale stock theft; abandoned and derelict farms along the country’s borders; organised smuggling of contraband including narcotics; and human trafficking by syndicates have been reported regularly with little tangible response from the government.

To cite one example: According to the KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Agriculture,  Environmental Affairs and Rural Development Lydia Johnson, livestock losses in 2008/2009 amounted to R365 million nationally and R109m in KwaZulu-Natal alone, with most of the stolen livestock smuggled to neighbouring countries such as Lesotho and Mozambique.

Regular media reports and images on the television of large numbers of illegals streaming across our porous borders – with little or no fear of repercussions – have become a familiar but chilling scene. Ostensibly, the message is out that South Africa is largely incapable of patrolling its borders properly. When caught, the consequences are worth the risk or the officials can be bribed to turn a blind eye.

Hope for a better life in South Africa and the ease with which the country’s borders can be crossed legally and illegally as well as the government's rather lax attitude have led to the current tsunami of illegal border crossers. This has not only placed undue pressure on existing capacity and funds, but has certainly contributed in no small matter to the xenophobic tendency among many South Africans.

In an attempt to redress the current situation, the SANDF – as part of the new South African National Border Management Agency as approved by Cabinet – is in the process of taking over patrol duties as part of Operation Corona. SANDF troops are already deployed on the Zimbabwean border. The current budget, however, only allows the deployment of 600 troops (four companies) to help patrol the 220-kilometre Zimbabwean border.

According to an official announcement, Operation Corona will cover the Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Lesotho borders and will be introduced in phases as more money is allocated.

One wonders why the SANDF was relieved from its border duties in the first place.

If the World Cup has played a role in shaking up the government to take notice and do something about the disgraceful state of the country’s borders, and commit itself to make our borders safe again and maintain it as is expected from a self-respecting state, then the 2010 event can be considered a success – irrespective of Bafana Bafana's exploits on the field.