Image Source: Central News
Soweto – Despite the tragedy of five children losing their lives, allegedly after consuming contaminated snacks bought from a foreign-owned shop, the Naledi community has been remarkably calm and restrained even amidst fears of potential xenophobic attacks.
The African Diaspora Forum’s chairperson, Amir Sheikh, praised the Soweto community for their response, noting that while some community members attacked one shop, the rest of the 35 shops in the area voluntarily closed at the request of community leaders.
He explained that the community is mourning and has asked shop owners to cease trading temporarily while investigations into the incident are underway.
“The community has said [to shop owners], we are in a period of mourning, and while we are mourning and looking for a solution, please close this shop. So, up to this moment, the fear is there, the tension is there and all over, but the situation seems to be a bit calm, and the local community has contained it.”
This marks the second time such a tragedy has struck the Naledi area, with a similar incident occurring last year when contaminated snacks were also implicated in the deaths of two children.
While the cause of the children’s deaths is still under investigation, Amir noted that toxicology results from the confiscated snacks are pending, and it is too early to make definitive conclusions.
However, he emphasised the need for patience and cooperation with the authorities, stressing that it is crucial to avoid speculation until the investigation is complete and the facts are clear.
“We can’t rule anything out. Last year, around the same time when a similar incident happened, the concern of the community and everyone was that these individuals had consumed a toxic biscuit. However, when the toxicology examinations and all other tests were conducted, the results came back negative, and the biscuits were not the cause.”
“Up to now, it remains a concern, but the reality is that we cannot definitively say what happened, and anything is possible. We have faith in our environmental health officers, who arrived early and confiscated the snacks from the shelves. We hope the results will be favourable and provide closure to the family.”
