Race Against Crime
Racial tension in South Africa flared into a public row recently after a Web site, crimexposouthafrica.org, began warning tourists against traveling to the country. The Web site’s operator, insurance broker Neil Watson, claims he is trying to raise awareness of the rampant crime that many residents, particularly whites, say is the result of government negligence. ...
Racial tension in South Africa flared into a public row recently after a Web site, crimexposouthafrica.org, began warning tourists against traveling to the country. The Web site's operator, insurance broker Neil Watson, claims he is trying to raise awareness of the rampant crime that many residents, particularly whites, say is the result of government negligence. Watson says crime is damaging South Africa's tourism potential and, to prove a point, he warns soccer fans against attending the 2010 World Cup there. The government, however, says Watson's aim is merely to discredit its post-apartheid achievements.
Racial tension in South Africa flared into a public row recently after a Web site, crimexposouthafrica.org, began warning tourists against traveling to the country. The Web site’s operator, insurance broker Neil Watson, claims he is trying to raise awareness of the rampant crime that many residents, particularly whites, say is the result of government negligence. Watson says crime is damaging South Africa’s tourism potential and, to prove a point, he warns soccer fans against attending the 2010 World Cup there. The government, however, says Watson’s aim is merely to discredit its post-apartheid achievements.
South Africa has one of the world’s highest rates of violent crime. South Africans are 50 times more likely to be murdered than are western Europeans and 12 times more likely than Americans. Watson’s Web site asks victims to send in their stories, which are then published, often unedited and with photos. Many of the stories recount crimes committed by blacks against whites. But in a country where racial tensions run high, any criticism of the government from whites tends to be considered suspect. In the Web site’s chat forum, the emergence of a discussion titled, "Achieving a White State in Africa," helped spread the view that Watson’s site is racist.
Watson denies the charge, but concedes that white supremacists are trying to "take possession" of his site. But he also insists that his site is working. He takes credit for New Zealand’s fresh travel warning against South Africa and for spurring the crime prevention plans announced over the summer by South Africa’s minister of safety and security, Charles Nqakula. A more likely explanation for the new crime-fighting measures, however, is that the country saw a sharp rise in crime rates this summer. The government had promised to reduce violent crime by 7 to 10 percent a year, but, by some measures, it has actually increased by as much as 15 percent this year alone.
That trend may help explain the surprising popularity of Watson’s site. It received 5 million hits from 119 countries in its first 10 weeks online. And others are taking notice. In August, South Africa’s opposition political party, the Democratic Alliance, capped its criticism of the government for the number of rapes and murders with the launch of a similar Web site. It remains to be seen whether these sites will help anyone identify the real criminals
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