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What's going on? Rioters in and around Johannesburg targeted immigrants from other African countries this week, torching their shops and leading to at least 10 deaths.
Now, angry citizens and governments across the continent are lashing out at South Africa and its businesses, denouncing what they call “xenophobia.”
Pop stars have announced a boycott. Air Tanzania has suspended flights to Johannesburg. Madagascar and Zambia are refusing to send their soccer teams.
The riots could not come at a more inopportune time for regional cooperation. This week, African leaders are meeting in South Africa, to discuss the African Continental Free Trade Area, an agreement that sets the stage for the creation of the largest free-trade area in the world.
The deal would join Africa’s more than one billion consumers into a single market. It is supposed to help knock down the many barriers to trade among African countries.
Right now, intra-African trade accounts for just 16 percent of the continent’s trade volume.
The riots and retaliation, while not likely to imperil the free trade agreement, could at least slow its implementation.
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