By Buziwe Nocuze
- Foreign-owned salons and phone repair shops outside and inside Khayelitsha Mall closed on Tuesday, with owners citing fears for their safety.
- Resident Zodwa Mveni says the closures are a safety precaution, not a departure, and expects shops to reopen within days.
Foreign-owned shops at Khayelitsha Mall did not open on Tuesday. Outside the mall, salons and phone repair shops run by foreign nationals stayed shut. Inside, most shops run by foreign nationals were closed too.
One foreign national, who spoke to Scrolla.Africa anonymously, said closing was about staying alive.
“Opening the shops today would be suicidal. Yes, we are losing money, and we still have to pay rent at the end of the month, but we can always earn money again. We cannot risk our lives, especially when we are being told to go home and we don’t know what might happen if we open,” he said.
Customers were caught out. Nombuso Matu, 45, came to have her hair done and had to turn back.
“In my area, the foreign-owned shops are open, so I didn’t think their salons would be closed. Now I have to go back home without doing my hair,” she said. She spent R17 getting to the mall and will spend another R17 going home, R34 lost on a wasted trip.
“Yes, they must go home, but they should take turns. They shouldn’t all leave or close their shops at once,” Matu said.
Liziwe Gijana, 30, went to get her phone fixed and found the shop closed too.
“I’m surprised they’ve closed their shops. During the week, they were acting normal,” she said. She needs her phone working to apply for jobs, and said she does not know of any South Africans doing phone repairs.
Resident Zodwa Mveni does not believe the closures mean foreign nationals are leaving the country.
“The shop owners are sitting outside enjoying the sun. They’re in their flats, closing shops doesn’t mean they’re gone, they’re just taking safety precautions. I bet tomorrow or before the end of the week, they’ll be back operating,” she said.
Pictured above: Foreign nationals outside Khayelitsha Mall closed their shops on Tuesday for safety reasons but have not left the country.
Image source: Buziwe Nocuze
