Weekend Long Read: Why South Africa Must Deal With Its Historical Baggage to Avoid Becoming a ‘Failed State’

I enjoyed reading two recent articles by Caixin Publisher Hu Shuli: Reflections on Visiting a South African Slum With Mandela’s Former Security Chief and A Night Visit to Mandela’s Hometown, which recounted her experiences in South Africa in 2018. These inspiring pieces stirred a multitude of my own reminiscences and reflections.

In November 2009, as a World Bank staff, I was transferred from the bank’s Beijing Office to the Pretoria Office in South Africa, where I lived and worked for nearly six years before returning to the bank’s headquarters in Washington D.C. in 2015. I have maintained a profound affection for the country and its people since then. Much of what Hu describes in her articles, especially regarding South Africa’s security situation, resonates deeply with my own experiences, which remain vivid to this day. Although her time in South Africa was but a fleeting few days, her brief observation — “historical liabilities are like malignant tumors spreading in the social body, causing frequent attacks” － was astute and identified the core issue.