A group of African delegates gathered in China have spoken out firmly against xenophobic attacks targeting Africans on the continent. Their message was direct and personal: the violence and hostility that Africans sometimes face from fellow Africans has no place in a shared future.
"We first have to recognise that in Africa we are all one," one delegate said. "These boundaries are artificial creations. We should treat each other as brothers and sisters." It is a reminder that the borders drawn across the continent were never made by the people who live within them, and that unity is not just an ideal but a practical necessity.
The call from delegates speaking from abroad carries a particular weight. Sometimes it takes distance from home to see clearly what home needs most. The question now is who on the continent is listening.
Originally published by Premium Times.