JOHANNESBURG, 22 May 2008 (IRIN) - Downtown Johannesburg was as busy as ever on Thursday afternoon. Gospel music blared from speakers, commuters and school children wove their way through the jammed market stalls and food outlets on Noord Street before boarding the taxis crawling bumper-to-bumper up Twist Street.

On Monday it had been different. A rumour that the "foreigners", who have their stalls in the area, were next to be attacked in the xenophobic violence that has flared across South Africa's largest city since 10 May, emptied Noord Street as the Nigerian, Zimbabwean and Mozambican traders closed shop.

Politicians, analysts, impassioned members of the public on the daily radio phone-in programmes, have all clamoured to give their opinion on what has caused the brutality that has so far claimed 42 lives and left 16,000 people homeless. IRIN spoke to seven people in Twist and Noord streets, at the heart of the city, for their views on the violence and the "foreigners" in their midst.

Tito

"It's not good at all. Some of the people who came to South Africa came with skills, not to do crime. On Monday all the buildings [in Noord Street] were abandoned. These people came here and opened shops and were selling goods. What I'm wearing I bought here. If they go back we won't survive, as we're surviving now. People come here to buy in bulk, people [find work] using those trolleys to push goods to the taxi ranks and [train] station.

"The whole complex was closed [on Monday]. It goes to show that [foreigners] are in control of small business here. They're not stealing jobs - I can't do what they do [retail trade]. Somehow I think [the xenophobia is about] jealousy. Even before they came here there were no jobs, so how can people say they're taking jobs?"

Elsie

"It's very hectic, truly speaking, they should go home. The first thing I noticed on Monday was that it was so quiet after they had dispersed. I realised that most people here are foreigners, and they should go home. The only people who own businesses in Johannesburg are Nigerians. There is no chance for me to open a business here, and I'm a South African.

"They should all go back or they will be killed. You can't find accommodation here, the whole of Johannesburg belongs to them; they treat the place like it belongs to them. I understand that Zimbabwe is in crisis, but they have to deal with their crisis, not flock to South Africa. I don't like the way they have been beaten up, but they must go home."

Thami

"I heard on the radio yesterday, politicians saying it was the IFP [the Zulu-dominated Inkatha Freedom Party] that was making the trouble, but I don't think so. I think it's all South Africans. You can see even here in town that people are not working, they don't have jobs - that's why there's a lot of crime. I can say that employers in South Africa employ [foreigners] because they don't ask for too much money. But South Africa is our country; we're supposed to get a lot of money.

"If the government wants us to be employed, it mustn't allow those from the outside to come here, it must supply us with jobs first before it allows people from outside to come here to our country and make the whole city dirty. But I can't blame them for coming here."

Zolani

The way they do it [attacking foreigners] with violence is not right, as violence is not the solution. At the same time, [foreigners] close the space for our job [opportunities] so foreigners need to go. People on the list for RDP houses [low-budget government housing] are being pushed off [by non-South Africans]. My opinion is that we can live with them, but what I hate is that they make crime. Not all of them, but some of them."

Cyril

"Johannesburg is a free country; no one should be discriminated against. There are too many foreigners but they should stay. The people doing the violence is a mix - it's not only Zulus. I don't know what we can do about it, but it's up to the government to solve it."

Anonymous

"I don't like foreigners. They are taking our jobs and the whole of Johannesburg is dirty because of the foreigners. They are taking some of our girls. Nigerians are wrong people because they are selling drugs, [but we] shouldn't kill them; the government should just take them back to Nigeria. The Zimbabweans are no problem; they are selling bananas and oranges, not drugs."

Grace

"Sometimes they're bad, like the Zimbabweans. They steal from the people. Where I live they stop and search you, take our phones, rob us. They must go because they do bad things. [But the violence against non-South Africans] is bad. The people must talk to them nicely, not kill them. But if they go, South Africa will be a better place; we'll have jobs."

oa/he

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