Nationwide — President Donald Trump’s plan to offer refugee status to white South Africans has been met with rejection from groups representing the country’s white minority. The plan, announced on Friday, also includes cutting U.S. aid to South Africa due to alleged human rights violations against white citizens.
The U.S. government accuses the South African government of enabling violent attacks on white Afrikaner farmers and passing a land expropriation law that allows for the seizure of their land without compensation. South Africa has denied these claims, calling them false and misleading.
In response, prominent Afrikaner groups, including Solidarity and AfriForum, rejected the offer, according to the Associated Press.
Dirk Hermann, Solidarity’s CEO, said, “Our members work here, and want to stay here, and they are going to stay here. We are committed to build a future here. We are not going anywhere.”
Kallie Kriel, CEO of AfriForum, similarly stated, “We have to state categorically: We don’t want to move elsewhere.”
South African officials criticized Trump’s move, arguing that Afrikaners remain among the most economically privileged groups in the country. Despite being a small minority, white South Africans own a significant share of private farmland. Critics also pointed out the inconsistency in focusing on Afrikaners while ignoring the struggles of vulnerable groups in the U.S.
While some white South Africans feel discriminated against, especially in the context of the post-apartheid era, many South Africans, like market trader Sithabile Ngidi, argue that the claims of mistreatment are exaggerated.
“He (Trump) should have actually come from America to South Africa to try and see what was happening for himself and not just take the word of an Elon Musk, who hasn’t lived in this country for the longest of time, who doesn’t even relate to South Africans,” she said.
Source: BlackNews.com
