The General Secretary of the South African Federation of Trade Unions (SAFTU), Zwelinzima Vavi, has urged South Africans to continue speaking out about the deep social and economic challenges facing black communities more than three decades after the advent of democracy.

Vavi says those promoting the narrative that South Africa is inherently xenophobic are fuelling fear and hostility while diverting attention from the country’s pressing issues, including unemployment, inequality, exploitation and corruption.

His remarks come amid the repatriation of more than 250 Nigerian nationals who reportedly claimed that their lives were under threat in South Africa.

Lulu Gaboo spoke to SAFTU General Secretary Zwelinzima Vavi.