Three Ghanaian children living in South Africa have recounted experiences of bullying and discrimination in school amid growing concerns over xenophobic attacks and hostility towards foreign nationals in the country.
Speaking to Umaru Sanda Amadu on Eyewitness News on Citi FM, the children said they have not been spared from mistreatment despite having been born and raised in South Africa.
An 11-year-old boy described facing insults and exclusion from his peers because of his Ghanaian background.
“Sometimes they tell me I am ugly and a foreigner. There are times they call me names. I choose to be a Ghanaian. I want to come to Ghana. They just bully us every day,” he said.
His six-year-old sister also recounted what she described as persistent bullying, alleging that even her teacher uses a derogatory term to refer to her.
“Always in my class, my teacher calls me ‘makwerekwere’ (derogatory slang used in South Africa to describe foreign nationals, especially black African immigrants). She blames me for things I did not do and calls my classmates to tease me. I don’t know why.
“When my father comes over, she acts as if nothing happened. She doesn’t want to be friends with me, but when my father is around, she acts nice to me. I don’t want to stay here, I want to come back to Ghana, my country,” she said.
Their seven-year-old brother said he is regularly subjected to body-shaming and harassment by classmates.
“When I am eating, they kick my food away, complain, and lie about me. They say I have two big teeth, two big ears, and a long nose. Afterwards, they say they will send me out of their school,” he said.
Their father, Isaac Owusu, said the recent wave of hostility towards foreigners has left his children traumatised and unwilling to attend school, forcing them to stay home for about a month.
Mr. Owusu said his family is prepared to return to Ghana on the next available evacuation flight, citing fears for their safety ahead of the reported June 30 deadline issued by some South Africans for foreign nationals to leave their country.
“I went to the High Commission last week and was told that there will be a flight next week, though I was not told the day. I will use this opportunity to plead with His Excellency John Dramani Mahama to have mercy on us because we are facing a very big challenge,” he said.
Since the recent resurgence of xenophobic attacks in South Africa, Ghana has evacuated over 987 citizens.
The first evacuation flight arrived in Ghana on Wednesday, May 27, carrying 300 returnees, while a second flight on Saturday, June 6, brought back 345 Ghanaian nationals.
A third batch of 342 evacuees arrived in the country on Sunday, June 7.
The evacuations form part of government efforts to assist more than 1,500 Ghanaian nationals in South Africa who have expressed their willingness to return home amid growing concerns over xenophobic violence and hostility toward foreign nationals.
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