Nay sayers

It has been amazing to see how much negative press the South Africans have received leading up the World Cup. First, the media emphasized that they would not have their stadiums ready in time. Then they talked about the roads and airports not being able to sustain all this traffic. Finally, there is the endless stories about crime.

On the first two accounts, South Africa has proved its naysayers wrong. The stadiums are all ready and look fabulous, especially Green Point Stadium in Cape Town. Other infrastructure improvements have been on time. The big wild card is of course crime. I am sure, however, that the South African government has taken the necessary steps to minimize that problem. Crime is a major problem in South Africa. We will probably continue to hear a lot of crime-related stories and these incidents will be sensationalized. The overwhelming visitors to South Africa will have a great time and not experience any crime. But the media is waiting and ready to pounce on any incident to perpetuate the notion of a crime infested South Africa.

But to what extent is racism a factor in this media portrayal? We did not hear anything about Australia not being ready for the Sydney Olympics or that the Germans would not be able to pull of the 2006 World Cup. However, when the Olympics were held in Greece, everyone was predicting that it would be a fiasco and nothing would be on time. I am confident that the World Cup in South Africa will be a fantastic event and will go as smooth as any such big event.