Latest news with #AfrikanerRefugees
Mail & Guardian
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Mail & Guardian
The legal position of the 49 Afrikaner ‘refugees': Sorts facts and misinformation
Afrikaner refugees from South Africa holding American flags arrive, Monday, May 12, 2025, at Dulles International Airport in Dulles, Va. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson) In recent months, the case of the 49 white South Africans, widely described as Afrikaner 'refugees', has ignited a global conversation. They were granted asylum in the United States after It is important that we clarify that these claims are not only false; they are dangerous. Let us be clear, there is no white genocide in South Africa. There is no legally valid refugee claim to be made by these individuals under either South African law or international conventions. And there is no monolithic, endangered 'Afrikaner' identity under siege. What we have here is a cynical distortion of fact, history and law. A distortion that threatens to undermine South Africa's social cohesion and the integrity of international refugee systems. South Africa's crime levels are high. But these numbers must be contextualised. The overwhelming majority of murder victims are black South Africans. Farm attacks, though often politicised, make up less than 0.3% of total murders annually. It is true that violent crime affects everyone in South Africa. But there is no statistical or credible factual basis for the claim that white South Africans face racial extermination. Quite to the contrary. Statistically a white South African is proportionally less likely to be murdered than a black South African is. This is not genocide. This is a national crime problem that affects all citizens, regardless of race. Regarding international law, the legal framework for determining refugee status is unambiguous. Article 1(A)(2) of the This definition excludes people fleeing general crime, economic hardship or declining social standing. For a refugee claim to be valid, there must be state persecution or a credible fear thereof based on protected grounds. In the case of the 49 who went to the US, no such evidence exists. Under the The Act explicitly excludes those fleeing general crime or economic insecurity, aligning with the There is no South African law, government policy or public practice that targets white South Africans. The South African government is meant to protect all citizens equally under the White people continue to occupy leading positions in business, law and agriculture. They remain represented economically and politically, and not oppressed. Even if generalised crime were a basis, which it is not, the state's ability to offer protection must be considered. The police services, albeit overstretched, do respond to and investigate crimes involving white victims, including farm attacks. No credible evidence suggests that white South Africans are refused police assistance because of their race. Finally, The US's decision to grant these 49 refugee status was not the product of legal merit. It was a political gesture. Respected analysts have pointed out the hypocrisy. Bill Frelick, of the Human Rights Watch, The 49 were flown out of a middle-income democracy in under three months. Compounding this failure is the international media's role in amplifying the false narrative. While some reputable outlets such as The New York Times and radio broadcaster NPR contextualised the situation, many others It is also important to note that the refugee narrative rests on a narrow, racially defined conception of the term 'Afrikaner' — a conception that does not pass historical or linguistic muster. People of mixed origin at the Cape referred to themselves as Afrikaners because they no longer could identify with the countries they originally came from. Afrikaans is a South African language with deep multicultural roots. It evolved not only from 17th-century Dutch, but also from Malay, Khoisan, Portuguese and African influences. The first written Afrikaans was an Arabic script, used by Muslim scholars at the Cape. To claim persecution of 'Afrikaners' as a racial group ignores the inclusive and evolving reality of Afrikaans identity. The language is one of South Africa's 12 official languages. It thrives in literature, music and education, and particularly in historically brown communities. The claim that 'Afrikaner culture' is being extinguished is not only false, it is dismissive of the millions of non-white South Africans who have built and sustained that culture. This case matters not just because of the lies being told, but because of the harm they cause. Every false claim of genocide trivialises the plight of genuine refugees around the world. Every false claim of racial persecution damages the credibility of international law and undermines the real transformation work still needed in South Africa. The FW de Klerk Foundation stands firmly against these distortions. We affirm that no South African citizen is being persecuted on the basis of race. We affirm the integrity of our Constitution, the legitimacy of our courts and the shared future of all South Africans, whether black, brown, Indian or white. As President FW de Klerk Let the world take note: South Africa is not perfect, but it is not a country of racial persecution. It is a country working — daily, deliberately and democratically — towards a future where truth matters more than fear and unity matters more than political spectacle. Ismail Joosub is a research intern at the FW de Klerk Foundation.
CNN
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CNN
Trump on Afrikaner Refugees:
Trump on Afrikaner Refugees: "If They Were Black, I'd Do the Exact Same Thing" First Of All with Victor Blackwell 43 mins Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin returns to defend the Trump administration's move to expedite refugee status for White South Africans while broadly suspending most other refugee programs. Victor also presses her on alleged plans for a reality show featuring immigrants, and her claims about protesters at an ICE detention facility in Newark, New Jersey. Plus, Monique Pressley joins Victor to break down the first week of the Sean 'Diddy' Combs trial and Cassie Ventura's emotional testimony. And a Trump-appointed prosecutor is under scrutiny for offering a plea deal to a Los Angeles sheriff's deputy accused of excessive force. His defense attorney, Tom Yu, joins Victor. And civil rights attorney Caree Harper explains to Victor why she thinks the agreement is illegal. Victor also breaks down why Maryland Governor Wes Moore is vetoing a bill to study reparations, plus the backlash to the president-elect of FAMU. And later, Victor speaks with the iconic actor Morgan Freeman about his 'Symphonic Blues Experience' that mixes genres you may not expect to go together.
CNN
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CNN
Trump on Afrikaner Refugees:
Trump on Afrikaner Refugees: "If They Were Black, I'd Do the Exact Same Thing" First Of All with Victor Blackwell 43 mins Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin returns to defend the Trump administration's move to expedite refugee status for White South Africans while broadly suspending most other refugee programs. Victor also presses her on alleged plans for a reality show featuring immigrants, and her claims about protesters at an ICE detention facility in Newark, New Jersey. Plus, Monique Pressley joins Victor to break down the first week of the Sean 'Diddy' Combs trial and Cassie Ventura's emotional testimony. And a Trump-appointed prosecutor is under scrutiny for offering a plea deal to a Los Angeles sheriff's deputy accused of excessive force. His defense attorney, Tom Yu, joins Victor. And civil rights attorney Caree Harper explains to Victor why she thinks the agreement is illegal. Victor also breaks down why Maryland Governor Wes Moore is vetoing a bill to study reparations, plus the backlash to the president-elect of FAMU. And later, Victor speaks with the iconic actor Morgan Freeman about his 'Symphonic Blues Experience' that mixes genres you may not expect to go together.
Mail & Guardian
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Mail & Guardian
US welcomes Afrikaner refugees: Hypocrisy or humanitarian?
Afrikaner refugees from South Africa holding American flags arrive, Monday, May 12, 2025, at Dulles International Airport in Dulles, Va. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson) The claim by the Trump administration that they are refugees is an abuse of the word This content is restricted to subscribers only . Join the M&G Community Our commitment at the Mail & Guardian is to ensure every reader enjoys the finest experience. Join the M&G community and support us in delivering in-depth news to you consistently. Subscription enables: - M&G community membership - independent journalism - access to all premium articles & features - a digital version of the weekly newspaper - invites to subscriber-only events - the opportunity to test new online features first Already a subscriber?
Mail & Guardian
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Mail & Guardian
Editorial: The true refugee crisis
Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau, left, greets Afrikaner refugees from South Africa, Monday, May 12, 2025, at Dulles International Airport in Dulles, Va. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson) Julia Nikhinson of the Associated Press this week shot a photograph that will earn a place in the annals of iconic South African imagery. It captures the first moments after the arrival of the Afrikaner refugees on American soil. The Stars and Stripes dangling limply from their hands, they look bedraggled and bemused. It was undoubtedly a long, tiresome journey, in fairness. But there's enough in their expressions to suggest they were mortified at realising that the pageantry greeting their arrival betrayed the political game they are being used in. Their landing in the US was orchestrated by a political machine that cares as little for their supposed plight as it does for the deportees going in the other direction. Back home, a mixture of anger, humour and incredulity greeted the news. The ANC, as it is wont to do, took the great trek personally, insisting a statement that 'ours is not a broken or failing state, it is a people's democracy advancing against the tides of distortion and destructive, divisive narratives'. But most of us can agree on the reality that the logic that granted 49 people refugee status is founded in falsehoods and misrepresentations. For all of South Africa's issues — crime being one of its most pernicious — it is an unequivocal fact that no group faces prejudiced, violent persecution. Regrettably, turning fiction into policy is not just a slight to the country that can be laughed off. What has emerged as most worrying throughout a week's reporting is how this week's act threatens to undermine the solemnity and global appreciation of terms such as 'refugee' and 'asylum seeker'. These are designations reserved for people who have reached the depths of desperation, who have no other choice but to flee their homes into a foreign land. President Donald Trump granting refugee status spits on that understanding, potentially risking untold lives in the future. It was immediately clear that his second term of presidency was not interested in maintaining what we broadly call the liberal world order. That much has been obvious from his protectionist rhetoric, annexation overtures and disregard for multilateral institutions. Yet this is different. This is the weaponisation, and ultimate barbarisation, of the refugee concept for political expediency. It is immoral, ridiculous and dangerous. We can do little to halt the capricious whims of the president of the United States. But we can refuse to be a part of it. South Africa does not have genocide but it does have division — much of it created by the political games that our own leaders play. If there ever was a time to put our bullshit aside and present a unified front to the world, it is now.
