by AfriForum Youth. South African emigrants are assisted to return to the country and bring back their skills, knowledge and networks with them. 3. High levels of crime – especially violent crime AfriForum and AfriForum Youth helps to establish neighbourhood watches and farm patrols to cooperate with the police in preventing crime in their communities. Where several South African tertiary education institutions expressed concerns about a rape culture on the campuses, students were trained to defend themselves against possible rapists. In this manner AfriForum and AfriForum Youth endeavour to enable South Africans to accept responsibility for their own security both in a safe manner and within the framework of the law. 4. Service delivery failures by authorities at all levels AfriForum and AfriForum Youth hold mismanaged authorities accountable for the failure to provide services, carefully monitor spending and appointments, oppose ideologically or race-based appointments and encourage communities to form partnerships with local authorities in order to take an active role in the maintenance of their own infrastructure. A better maintained infrastructure of course engenders investment, economic growth, higher levels of employment and finally, greater political and economic stability – all elements that are vital to the establishment of a viable future. 5. Political instability Concerning racial scapegoating, AfriForum and AfriForum Youth play a watchdog role. Both organisations also advocate equal treatment for all in the eyes of the law. The matters that necessitated a deflection of public attention by means of this scapegoating in the first place, such as state capture and wide-spread corruption, are also addressed, inter alia by means of AfriForum’s newly established private prosecution unit under advocate Gerrie Nel. Meanwhile events are organised or attended where closer ties with other South African communities can be established. Appeal for help AfriForum and AfriForum Youth appeal to the Forum on Minority Issues to support the actions of South African NGOs such as ourselves by applying pressure on the South African government to address all of the abovementioned issues as a matter of urgency. We also hope that the international community will encourage the South African authorities to cooperate with NGOs, instead of opposing them and threatening to restrict their access to international platforms such as this forum.14 14. http://www.icnl.org/research/monitor/southafrica.html. 6