Not just Afrikaners: 'Refugee' status open to 'racial minorities'
According to the administration, the offer is open to all 'racial minorities' in the country..
What exactly does this mean – and who is it referring to?
This week, the US Embassy issued a statement detailing the Refugee Admissions Programme, which President Donald Trump signed off on.
This comes days after officials in America welcomed 49 Afrikaners based on claims that they were victims of 'racial discrimination' in South Africa.
However, the programme is exclusive to Afrikaners, or white people, for that matter.
As per the criteria, applicants need to be South African and 'a member of a racial minority in South Africa'.
Applicants are also required to prove that they are being 'persecuted', based on race, religion, nationality, political opinion, membership of a social group, or a fear of 'future harm'.
So far, 49 Afrikaners have taken up the Trump administration's offer of refugee status in the US.
However, they are not the only minority in South Africa.
According to official statistics, SA has over 62 million citizens, with the majority of the population being black South Africans at over 50.4 million or 81.4 %.
The following are thus considered 'racial minorities', according to the 2022 census: Whites 4.5 million (7.3 %),
Coloured 5.05 million (8.2 %),
Indian/Asian 1.6 million (2.7 %)
And 'Other' at 0.24 million (0.4 %)
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