Last week President Thabo Mbeki sent a delegation of six retired generals to investigate the post-election violence in Zimbabwe. The generals were reportedly shocked to discover high levels of state-sponsored terror.

The South African Institute of Race Relations this afternoon called on President Mbeki to listen to his advisors on the ground. “It is important that South Africans and Zimbabweans see Mbeki listening to the people he has put in place to advise him on the situation in Zimbabwe,” Hannah Botsis, a researcher at the Institute said.

“It is already evident that Mbeki has shunned the advice of the Khampepe report on electoral issues in Zimbabwe from 2002. Nonetheless given the current xenophobic attacks taking place in our own country against Zimbabweans, not acting decisively on the electoral violence, sends the wrong message to South Africans perpetrating violence against Zimbabweans in this country.”

“If Mbeki refuses to act on the reported violence happening in Zimbabwe, where he is chief mediator, why should the mobs in Alexandra take the law enforcers or government officials seriously about not acting against Zimbabweans taking refuge in South Africa. His non-action sends dangerous mixed messages about what kinds of violence, and against whom, will be tolerated”.