The economy must come first, not emotion

In 2009 the United Kingdom (UK) introduced visa requirements for South Africans entering their country. This in itself is not a big story until one scratches a little deeper. Firstly, South Africa has had a special relationship with the UK; we have a historic bond and we are a former colony of the “British Empire”. Until 1961 our head of state was the Queen herself and today we are a member of the Commonwealth. Culturally we, and I mean all South Africans, black and white, are actually quite “English”. The way we speak is not too far removed from that of “Queen’s English”, our lifestyle, outlook and even culture has been heavily influenced by the English. Our school system, the way we conduct business and even our political system all originate from the UK. So for the UK to “suddenly” insist that South Africans must be in possession of visas when entering their country is much more “dramatic” or “personal” than any other country. When this imposition was made it was for a good and solid reason; the systems of the Department of Home Affairs were no longer considered secure enough. Too many illegal people had entered the United Kingdom via South Africa and the UK considered us too risky. Simply put; the government had dropped the ball on this one. Quite some time has now passed, the Minister of Home Affairs told me in Parliament that systems were now secure and that there are no longer reasons for the UK to demand visas from us. Minister Pandor told us that her department was in discussions with UK authorities on this matter. It appears that these discussions appear to be going nowhere as now Home Affairs are threatening to reciprocate and insist on UK citizen’s possessing visas when entering South Africa. On the face of it, if indeed our systems are indeed secure and safe again and the UK is not lifting this criteria on us, then we too should make similar demands; after all they are not our “colonial masters” and who do they think they are in any case!? The emotional attitude however is not helpful and will hurt South Africa more than it would ever hurt the Queen and her subjects. The largest number of tourists to South Africa come from the UK. If Britons start looking at other holiday and, even business, destinations it is South Africa and our economy that would suffer. Britons, or anyone else, are not obliged to visit our shores. They can go anywhere; the rest of the world is our competition. We need to make it as easy and attractive for UK citizens to visit us. Doing anything to complicate or frustrate these tourists or business people from coming to South Africa could potentially mean the loss of jobs in the tourism industry, the hospitality, transport and services industry, to mention only a few examples. We need to be level-headed and to think about our economy, and frankly, ourselves, without getting emotional. In the meantime, we need to ensure that Home Affairs ensures that their systems are safe and secure. If we are confident of this it is our job to show the UK that this is the case and to work towards dropping the visa requirements imposition by the UK.