US President Donald Trump delivers remarks during the President Donald Trump has issued an order for the prioritisation of white Afrikaner South Africans through the United States refugee programme. Essentially, Trump is accusing the South African government of discriminating against Afrikaners through the newly signed Land Expropriation bill and is offering a home for them in his country.
Image: Anna Moneymaker AFP
President Donald Trump has issued an order for the prioritisation of white Afrikaner South Africans through the United States refugee programme.
Essentially, Trump is accusing the South African government of discriminating against Afrikaners through the newly signed Land Expropriation Act and is offering a home for them in his country.
The order states: "In shocking disregard of its citizens (South) Africa recently enacted the Land Expropriation bill to enable the government of South Africa to seize ethnic minority Afrikaners' agricultural property without compensation.
"This Act follows countless government policies designed to dismantle equal opportunity in employment, education, and business, and hateful rhetoric and government actions fueling disproportionate violence against racially disfavored landowners."
It further claims that South Africa has taken aggressive positions towards the US and its allies, including accusing Israel, not Hamas, of genocide in the International Court of Justice, and reinvigorating its relations with Iran to develop commercial, military, and nuclear arrangements.
"The United States cannot support the government of South Africa's commission of rights violations in its country or its 'undermining United States foreign policy, which poses national security threats to Nation, our allies, our African partners, and our interests," Trump said.
He ordered that the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Homeland Security must take appropriate steps, consistent with law, to prioritise humanitarian relief, including admission and resettlement through the United States Refugee Admissions Program, "for Afrikaners in South Africa who are victims of unjust racial discrimination."
"Such plan shall be submitted to the President through the Assistant to the President and Homeland Security Advisor," the order stated.
Trump's latest move comes days after he cut funding to SA over the Expropriation Act.
According to Trump, "South Africa is confiscating land, and treating certain classes of people VERY BADLY. I will be cutting off all future funding to South Africa until a full investigation of this situation has been completed!" he shared on his social media platform, Truth Social.
Meanwhile, several South African Civil Society organisations have criticised Trump for peddling 'dangerous lies' about the country's Land Expropriation Act
In a joint statement, the organisations, including the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation, Helen Suzman Foundation and The Desmond and Leah Tutu Foundation, said SA's government and executive are frequently deserving of fierce criticism but Trump's assertions were dangerous.
While Afrikaner lobby group, AfriForum, have denied influencing Trump's decision, it said the African National Congress leaders must bear full blame for what Trump said.
The group's chief executive Kallie Kriel argued that the Presidency, the ANC and their allies’ attempts to blame AfriForum for Trump’s statements was a clear attempt from President Cyril Ramaphosa and the ANC to try to exculpate themselves from the negative consequences of their own thoughtless, extremist policy courses and actions.
seanne.rall@iol.co.za
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