A Ghanaian academic based at the University of Vienna, Austria, Prof. Dr. Adams Bodomo, has announced that he is boycotting academic engagements with South African institutions in protest against recurring xenophobic attacks on African migrants in the country.
The Professor of Linguistics and African Literatures disclosed on Wednesday that he had declined, for the second time in about a month, an invitation from South Africa’s National Research Foundation (NRF) to serve as a reviewer of a research profile.
According to Prof. Bodomo, the decision was a deliberate protest aimed at drawing attention to what he described as the South African government’s failure to decisively address attacks targeting fellow Africans living in the country.
Sharing an excerpt of the email he received from the NRF on his Facebook page, Prof. Bodomo revealed that he had been invited to review a research profile on behalf of the foundation.
However, he responded by rejecting the request.
“Dear colleagues, Thanks for inviting me to review for NRF.
However, I will not be able to do this because of the xenophobic/afrophobic attacks on Africans in your country! Best regards,” he wrote in his response.
Explaining his position, Prof. Bodomo called on Africans across different professional fields to adopt similar forms of peaceful protest until meaningful action is taken to curb xenophobic violence.
“This is the second time in about a month that I have declined to review for a South African research institution,” he stated.
“If we all could boycott South Africa in various ways in our own line of duties, very soon the government of South Africa will prevent the afrophobic attacks.”
He argued that academic institutions in South Africa have not done enough to confront xenophobia and promote solidarity among Africans.
“Academic institutions are NOT doing enough to prevent xenophobia in that country,” he said.
Drawing parallels with the international campaign against apartheid, Prof. Bodomo maintained that coordinated boycotts had historically proven effective in influencing political change.
“Remember—for those of us old enough—that this is also how we brought apartheid to its knees: we boycotted many South African institutions,” he wrote.
“We have to use the same tools that we used to defeat apartheid in South Africa to defeat afrophobia in South Africa!”
Prof. Bodomo’s comments come amid renewed concerns over attacks on foreign nationals in parts of South Africa, where migrants from several African countries have periodically been targeted in outbreaks of violence, prompting calls for stronger government intervention and greater protection for immigrants.
Meanwhile, nearly 1,000 Ghanaians (approximately 926) have been repatriated from South Africa to Accra in earlier phases of the evacuation. An additional “final batch” of nearly 900 registered citizens is scheduled to begin returning home on July 25, 2026, amid ongoing anti-immigration protests and violence.
Source: www.kumasimail.com
