As South Africa is gripped by a wave of violent xenophobic attacks, trade union Solidarity called on government to appoint a multidisciplinary independent task team headed by a retired judge to delve into the violent uprisings against non-South Africans.

While President Jacob Zuma established a Ministerial task team to curb the attacks on foreign nationals that had resulted in several deaths and the displacement of thousands of foreigners, as well as the mass looting of foreign-owned shops in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng over the past two weeks, Solidarity Movement chairperson Flip Buys indicated it was not enough.

“The reasons for the attacks on foreigners are not simplistic in nature and require a multidimensional response. For this reason, Solidarity is requesting a comprehensive and credible investigation … [into the] underlying reasons for the violence,” he said, adding that the role social media was playing to incite violence must also be included in the probe.

Zuma on Monday announced the formation of an inter-Ministerial committee that would be chaired by Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation Minister Jeff Radebe and comprising Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba; International Relations and Cooperation Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane; Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Pravin Gordhan; Defence and Military Veterans Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula; and Social Development Minister Bathabile Dlamini.

The Ministers of Health, Basic Education, Police, State Security and Justice and Correctional Services were also part of the task team.

Buys, however, believed that a task team required an “independent character” to be successful in the long term.

Solidarity joined the calls for peace, requesting police to follow a zero tolerance approach; communities to cooperate with the police to stop attacks; and politicians from across the spectrum to denounce the attacks.