Warning! | Pushkar's Diary

Johannesburg is also called the Golden City of South Africa but its reputation is a bit tarnished. I had heard enough scary stories about Joburg before arriving here to make me want to leave in a hurry.

I did, however, venture into the city a couple of times with no watch, no sunglasses, no camera, no nice T-shirt, no nice jeans, etc. Stories of people getting killed for 5 Rand float around. With a bullet costing only 2 Rand, the robber could still make a 3 Rand profit. If he steals the bullet, his net profit is 5 Rand.

There was this big story in a newspaper about people being killed for a piece of chicken. Every day, you hear police sirens rushing around the city a dozen times. This is 'normal life' in Joburg. The residential houses look like prisons with high gates, electric fences and a couple of menacing dogs baring their teeth from within. If you venture too close, the owner might come out pointing a gun at you.

There are some Nepalis living here. Some run small businesses, others are students, some are looking for refuge in a safer country and are using Joburg as a transit point. I didn't meet a single Nepali who hadn't been robbed. The 'least' robbed number was three times, some had been robbed as many as 12 times. They told me that they sent all their new jeans home. They haven't seen a watch in a long time, they keep it in boxes, maybe the batteries are dead by now.

Students here tell me of robberies that happen in broad daylight in the middle of town. If you see somebody wearing a watch in the city, it means the person is new to Joburg or is a robber. Normal people here don't wear watches.

The police say they are trying to control robbery. The jails are full of robbers. They might send robbers to jail but I'm told it has really become a training ground for new robbery ideas and techniques. There's a famous saying here which goes: If you want to be a medical doctor or surgeon, come to Joburg. I think its true because Joburg hospitals fill up daily with people who have bullet or knife wounds. A novice can quickly become an expert surgeon in a Joburg hospital with all the practice. People don't ride the local trains as that's where most of the robberies take place. Victims are usually from other poor African countries. The World Cup Football 2010 will be held in South Africa. How safe will it be? The big question mark hangs in the middle of Joburg.

Peace,
Pushkar Shah, Johannesburg