ANC: Victoria Liberal leader Matthew Guy ‘derogatory’

Victorian Opposition Leader Matthew Guy shrugs off ANC outrage at “derogatory” comments he made about South Africa.

Matthew Guy. Picture: Alex Coppel.

UPDATE: Australia’s High Commission in South Africa has intervened to smooth relations after Victorian Opposition Leader Matthew Guy sparked outrage by warning that Premier Daniel Andrews’ approach to tackling crime put Melbourne at risk of becoming “the Johannesburg of the South Pacific”.

The country’s ruling party, the African National Congress, issued a press release last night accusing the Liberal leader of making “derogatory comments directed at South Africa” and calling on the High Commission of Australia in Pretoria to “clarify” the comments.

A spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade this afternoon confirmed the High Commission had been in touch with the ANC.

“Our High Commission in Pretoria has explained to the African National Congress that Mr Guy’s remarks do not reflect the views of the Australian government,” the spokesperson said.

“Australia continues to enjoy a positive and substantial bilateral relationship with South Africa.”

Mr Guy was unconcerned by the ANC’s outrage.

“I am more interested in solving Victoria’s crime wave than responding to press releases from South Africa’s left wing ANC political party,” he said.

Mr Guy made the Johannesburg comparison in the wake of a justice system crisis highlighted by last week’s Bourke Street attack and Wednesday’s youth detention centre escape.

Five people were killed and at least twenty others injured in last week’s attack which was allegedly perpetrated by a man who had been released on bail, while on Wednesday 15 youths escaped from a detention facility in Malmsbury.

All have now been rearrested after a violent crime spree.

South Africa, where Johannesburg is the largest city, has a notoriously high rate of murders, assaults, rapes and other violent crimes such as car-jackings.

In 2014 it had a murder rate of 33 per 100,000, compared with Australia’s rate of 1 per 100,000.

The country is known as the “rape capital of the world”, with some 65,000 rapes and other sexual assaults reported for the year ending in March 2012.

The ANC described Mr Guy’s comments as “regrettable”, and said they fed into “lazy stereotypes of African cities as crime havens.”

“They serve to tarnish the reputation of the City of Johannesburg — known widely as the gateway to Africa; and regularly cited among several indices as world-class city,” the ANC said.

“Drawing South Africa — with a well established reputation as a leading tourism destination, into the political frays of Victoria state, is unfortunate and unbecoming of a senior Australian politician.

“Such words are an insult to the residents of the City of Johannesburg and to the countless men and women who work for the City, and who remain dedicated to sustaining the city’s reputation as a place of choice to work and live.”