Latest news with #Orania
News24
6 days ago
- General
- News24
Orania in the US, King Charles counts swans, and Indian man runs fake embassy
There's an Orania in America, a Martian rock sold for R100 million, the Royal counting of the swans, and a fake embassy in India. Be among those who shape the future with knowledge. Uncover exclusive stories that captivate your mind and heart with our FREE 14-day subscription trial. Dive into a world of inspiration, learning, and empowerment. You can only trial once. Start your FREE trial now Show Comments ()
Mail & Guardian
09-06-2025
- Politics
- Mail & Guardian
New enclaves recall medieval feudal states
(Graphic: John McCann/M&G) A few weeks ago I appeared on Newzroom Afrika's Top Stories of the Week programme with the excellent host, Naledi Moleo. It is a news programme that covers the week's top stories in a similar format as that of sports news channel ESPN. It sprints through as many topics as possible within a 45 to 60 minute show, inclusive of commercial breaks. One of the topics we touched on was the march against the whites-only Afrikaner settlement of Kleinfontein in Tshwane by the Economic Freedom Fighters. At that stage, the Oval Office meeting between presidents Cyril Ramaphosa and Donald Trump had not yet occurred, but the country was fixated on Trump's offer for asylum to white Afrikaners. The discussion got me thinking long after the show. Obviously settlements like Orania and Kleinfontein are racist and must be rejected immediately. They should not be allowed to exist, it is as simple as that. If we remove the racial dimension from the phenomena of Orania and Kleinfontein, we will discern that there is a much larger sinister global agenda afoot. American tech billionaires such as Balaji Srinivasan, Marc Andreessen and Peter Thiel, associated with Trump and his Make America Great Again movement, are financially backing Próspera, a city state, on the island of Roatan in Honduras. These city states have been called different names, such as 'charter cities', 'start-up cities', 'freedom cities' and free private cities, so as to make them seem as harmless as possible. In Honduras, Próspera was created through government-established zones of economic development and employment, the ZEDEs. In the ZEDE, Próspera can operate autonomously from the Honduran government. The idea behind Próspera is to create free-market enclaves with their own rules and laws. It is governed by a council composed of nine members. Five are elected, while four are appointed by Honduras Próspera Inc, therefore in practice the company has an effective veto power because all decisions require a two-thirds majority. In Próspera the more land you own the more votes you get. Visitors are required to apply and receive a enter through a customs border post guarded by the company's private militia. Próspera adopts its own civil and commercial codes, which are subject to Honduran criminal law. Its charter disallows land expropriation, but Próspera itself is allowed to incorporate land anywhere on the island of Roatan. Local Hondurans, such as the local Crawfish Rock community, live in fear of their land being taken away by Próspera and its plans for expansion. Próspera collects its own taxes from residents, which includes the businesses located on Próspera. The taxes are low, with business paying only 1% of revenue and being allowed to customise the commercial regulations that apply to them. Personal tax is only 5% and the local government receives no tax revenue from Próspera. Rich people, especially Americans, go to Próspera seeking experimental medical treatment that is not approved by the US Food and Drug Administration. These are vanity projects such as inserting a chip into your hand so that you can communicate with your Tesla vehicle. Honduras President Xiomara Castro has vowed to keep her 2021 election campaign promise of dismantling Próspera. Her attempts have been met with stiff opposition by the rich owners of Próspera, who are in turn suing the Honduran government for nearly $11 billion, which is one-third of the Honduran GDP. A Próspera advocacy group called the Freedom Cities coalition has begun meeting with the Trump administration. Elvira Salazar, a Republican congresswoman from Florida, has claimed that the Honduran government are socialists who do not care for their country when they do not allow ZEDEs to do what they like. The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes, a World Bank-funded institution, an arbitration body established in 1966 to settle legal disputes between international investors and countries, has ruled against the Honduran government, that the investors had to exhaust local remedies before appealing for arbitration, which effectively allows the $11 billion lawsuit to proceed. This is despite the Honduran supreme court's 2024 judgement that rendered the ZEDEs unconstitutional retroactively. These elitist enclaves are not exactly new. Victoria Island in Lagos, Nigeria was established in colonial times for the British elite, and in 1960 when Nigeria got its independence, local Nigerian elites joined the British expatriates on the Island. In the 2024 election campaign trail Trump promised the establishment of freedom cities in the United States. Already there is talk about a freedom city being established north of San Francisco and a crypto state in the Mediterranean. In Zambia there is Nkwashi, which is 36 kilometres east of the capital city Lusaka, that is described as a self-contained city that is privately owned, managed, and autonomous of the government. As much as we despise Orania and Kleinfontein, and may baulk at the phenomena of Próspera, we are busy establishing similar settlements all over the country. It may not be racist, but the increasing phenomena of golfing and townhouse type estates are essentially classist and elitist. These estates have their own government called a body corporate, their own private police force, and the body corporate has legislative powers, and acts as the judiciary. Thus, we are witnessing a return to feudal times with feudal lords and people living in city states. Initially these were purely residential, governed by an elected body corporate that decided on estate rules on the common areas of parking, gardens and walkways, as well as issues like loud music. Later these estates began creating clubhouses, with shops so you could buy items, as well as have a meal, a drink and get together with other residents. These estates offer much more today. Besides golf courses they now have gyms, daycare centres, schools and offices that can be rented. It is only a matter of time before national retailers such as Pick n Pay, Checkers and Woolworths enter: soon there will be a shopping mall in an estate. Farming areas in the Western Cape are being transformed into residential estates. Farm workers and labour tenants, who have lived on the land for many years, are moved off the land and can only work as minimum wage service staff on these estates. The Val de Vie estate in the Cape Winelands, for instance, has properties that cost R6 million for a small house and larger ones at R120 million. It is a small step for such estates to become a Próspera. The Cape Independence and the Referendum parties have previously called for the secession of the province. Next year we shall be expected to participate in local government elections. All our local governments are failing, even those who claim to be an oasis of success in a desert of ineptitude, and therefore the advent of these private sector enclaves of residential estates are appealing. Especially when crime and grime affect all, both historical townships and suburbs. Commercial districts, such as city business districts, the so-called City Improvement Districts, and even our 1980s urban strip malls, are also negatively affected by the utter deteriorating local governance. We will not solve government failures by creating private retreats. But it is equally compelling for political parties and their leaders, especially the ANC, to admit that it is not just the appeal of private retreats that makes an Orania-like golf estate attractive but it is also due to the contempt in which the people are treated in the free South Africa. Political parties have to reconnect with the people of South Africa, not by saying how much better they are than other failing parties, but by actually really listening and involving the people so that our cities are run better, there is increasing employment for all, and we effectively tackle poverty and inequality. If we cannot do these things, our country will resemble a medieval feudal state with golf city states while the majority live outside the castle walls, hoping their children will one day be able to live in these enclaves. Donovan E Williams is a social commentator. @TheSherpaZA on X.
Mail & Guardian
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Mail & Guardian
Orania's segregated success versus the crushing weight of inequality on municipalities
Unlike most municipalities in the country, which are constitutionally mandated to serve every resident in their borders, irrespective of race, culture, or socio-economic status, Orania operates on a different premise: selective admission. The relentless tide of bad news emanating from South Africa's municipalities paints a grim portrait of a state struggling at its most fundamental level. Infrastructure crumbles, service delivery collapses and the promise of local governance serving its people withers under the weight of corruption and inefficiency. In this disheartening context, Orania in the Northern Cape often surfaces as a perplexing counterpoint. This self-proclaimed Afrikaner enclave, founded on principles of cultural and racial exclusivity that fly in the face of South Africa's hard-won democracy, seemingly exhibits a degree of operational functionality that many municipalities can only dream of. But any attempt to draw direct parallels or extract straightforward lessons from Orania's relative success without a critical and nuanced understanding of its inherent nature would be a disservice to the complex realities in South Africa. Unlike most municipalities in the country, which are constitutionally mandated to serve every resident in their borders, irrespective of race, culture, or socio-economic status, Orania operates on a different premise: selective admission. Prospective residents of Orania must This inherent selectivity creates a socio-economic and cultural homogeneity that artificially simplifies the challenges of governance in ways that are unattainable, and morally undesirable, for South Africa's diverse and deeply unequal municipalities. The apparent efficiency of Orania therefore exists within a carefully constructed bubble of relative affluence and shared identity. It is a competence not solely attributable to superior administrative practices, but also to the exclusion of a significant portion of the population — those who place the greatest demands on municipal resources, social welfare systems and basic service provision. Municipalities, in stark contrast, are tasked with the monumental undertaking of serving diverse communities grappling with the pervasive legacies of apartheid, including widespread unemployment, inadequate housing and profound socio-economic disparities. Consider the sheer scale of the problem. Municipalities are responsible for providing water, sanitation, electricity, waste management and a host of other essential services to populations that often include vast informal settlements with limited infrastructure, high levels of unemployment necessitating social grants and support programs, and a complex tapestry of cultural and linguistic diversity requiring inclusive and equitable governance. Orania, by its very design, avoids these complexities. Its ability to streamline services and focus resources is undoubtedly enhanced by its capacity to effectively choose its residents, creating a community with a relatively uniform socio-economic profile and a shared cultural background. While proponents might point to Orania's apparent fiscal responsibility and community engagement as potential lessons, these aspects are inextricably linked to its exclusionary nature. The ability to generate local revenue and reinvest it effectively is arguably made simpler when the resident base is largely economically active and capable of contributing. Similarly, fostering a strong sense of community participation is easier within a relatively homogenous group with shared values and a vested interest in maintaining their self-created environment. These dynamics are far more intricate and difficult to cultivate in diverse municipalities grappling with historical divisions and stark inequalities. The lessons to be gleaned from Orania, therefore, must be approached with extreme caution. To simply admire its apparent functionality without acknowledging the ethical and practical implications of its exclusionary policies would be a dangerous oversimplification. The challenge for municipalities is not to emulate a model built on segregation, but to find ways to achieve effective governance within the context of their diverse and often deeply impoverished populations. This requires innovative solutions, transparent financial management, robust anti-corruption measures and genuine community engagement that transcends socio-economic divides. The mirage of order in Orania, achieved through exclusion, should serve not as a blueprint, but as a stark reminder of the fundamental issues posed by inequality. The pursuit of efficiency cannot come at the cost of social justice and the constitutional imperative to serve all. Instead of seeking inspiration in segregation, municipalities must focus on building capacity, fostering accountability and implementing policies that address the root causes of inequality, ultimately creating a more just and functional society for all its people. The true measure of success for municipalities will not be found in the isolated efficiency of exclusion, but in the inclusive prosperity and well-being of all their residents. Lindani Zungu is a political science graduate from New York University, who is a Mandela Rhodes Scholar pursuing a master's in political studies and is the editor-in-chief of the youth-oriented publication (Voices of Mzansi) in South Africa.
CNN
21-05-2025
- Politics
- CNN
Trump fast-tracked processing of White South African refugees. But not everyone wants to leave
A group of 59 White South Africans arrived in the United States last week after being granted refugee status by the White House, which has fast-tracked the processing of Afrikaner refugees but paused refugee applications for other nationalities. On Wednesday, South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa is set to meet his US counterpart Donald Trump in Washington, seeking a reset in relations with the United States. Ties between both nations have been fraught since Trump froze aid to South Africa in February over claims it was mistreating its minority White population. The South African government said 'reframing bilateral, economic and commercial relations' was the specific focus of Ramaphosa's US visit. Ramaphosa said that the White South Africans arriving in the US 'do not fit the bill' for having refugee status as someone who is leaving their country out of fear of persecution. But as thousands more Afrikaners hope for admission to the US, others insist they have no need of refugee status but want America's help instead to tackle a wave of violent crime in South Africa, or even to establish an autonomous state within a state. Joost Strydom leads the group of White South Africans who have dismissed the US' offer of asylum, and heads Orania, a separatist 'Afrikaner-only' settlement in the country's Northern Cape. 'Help us here,' he said his message was to Trump, whom he hopes will recognize Orania's quest for self-determination. 'We don't want to leave here,' he told CNN. 'We don't want to be refugees in the US.' Home to some 3,000 Afrikaners, the 8,000-hectare (19,800-acre) Orania town is partially self-governing. The exclusively White enclave produces half of its own electricity needs, takes local taxes, and prints its own currency that's pegged to the South African rand. But the settlement's residents want more: its recognition as an independent state. Strydom was part of Orania's delegation to the US in late March to push for this goal. 'We met with government officials,' he said. 'The conversation is ongoing, and it is something that we've decided to keep a low profile on.' Orania is backed by a 1994 post-apartheid accord that allowed for Afrikaner self-determination, including the concept of an Afrikaner state, referred to as Volkstaat. Strydom anticipates that the settlement could develop into a 'national home for the Afrikaner people.' Afrikaners are the descendants of predominantly Dutch settlers in South Africa, with White South Africans making up roughly 7% of the country's population as of 2022 – a share that had declined from 11% in 1996, census data shows. A discriminatory apartheid government led by Afrikaners lost power in the mid-1990s, replaced by a multi-party democracy dominated by the African National Congress. At least 67,000 South Africans have shown interest in seeking refugee status in the US, according to the South African Chamber of Commerce in the USA (SACCUSA). In comments justifying his decision to resettle Afrikaners in the US, Trump cited claims that 'a genocide is taking place' in South Africa, adding that 'White farmers are being brutally killed and their land confiscated.' South African authorities have strongly denied such claims. In a statement in February, the South African Police Service said 'only one farmer, who happens to be white,' had been killed between October 1 and December 31, and urged the public 'to desist from assumptions that belong to the past, where farm murders are the same as murders of white farmers.' Police minister Senzo Mchunu stressed in a recent statement that there was no evidence of a 'White genocide' in the country. The police crime figure for the last quarter of 2024 had been disputed by an Afrikaner advocacy group, AfriForum, which argued that five farm owners were murdered during those months and that police had underreported the actual figures. AfriForum has been documenting farm murders in South Africa for years. In its report for 2023, it said there were at least 77 farm attacks and nine murders in the first quarter of that year, almost equaling the 80 attacks and 11 murders it recorded within the same period in 2022. CNN could not independently verify those figures - the government says around 20,000 people are murdered each year. Most of the attacks happened in Gauteng province, the group stated. Gauteng is home to the largest concentration of South Africa's White population, according to the country's last census in 2022, with about 1.5 million Whites living there. Afrikaner farmer Adriaan Vos is a recent victim of Gauteng's farm attacks. The 55-year-old said he was left fighting for his life just two months ago after being shot on his farm in Glenharvie, a township in Westonaria, West of Gauteng. 'I was shot twice in the knee and once at my back,' Vos said about the attack on his farm in the early hours of March 16. 'Luckily, that bullet stuck next to my lung,' he said, adding that his farmhouse was pillaged and set on fire the same night. Vos could not identify his attackers and is unsure whether the attack was racially motivated. But the raid appears to be part of a pattern of farm attacks that has persisted for years in South Africa, a country grappling with one of the world's highest murder rates. South African authorities rarely publish crime figures by race but local media report that most murder victims are Black. Westonaria police told CNN there are 'no known suspects' in the attack on Vos' farm and 'no clues of who the attackers were.' South African leader Ramaphosa does not believe that Afrikaners are being persecuted – as claimed by Trump and his ally Elon Musk, who was born and raised in the country – and has described those fleeing to the US as 'cowards' who are opposed to his government's efforts to undo the legacy of apartheid, especially inequality. One of those efforts was the controversial enactment in January of an Expropriation Act, which empowers South Africa's government to take land and redistribute it – with no obligation to pay compensation in some instances – if the seizure is found to be 'just and equitable and in the public interest.' Under apartheid, Black South Africans were forcibly dispossessed of their lands for the benefit of Whites. Today, some three decades after racial segregation officially ended in the country, Blacks, who comprise over 80% of the country's population of 63 million, own around 4% of private land while 72% is held by Whites. For some Afrikaners in Orania, there is more to lose than gain if they choose to be refugees in the US. Built from scratch on arid land described by Strydom as 'an abandoned ghost town' with extreme weather, Orania has witnessed infrastructural growth and is the most realistic place to preserve Afrikaner culture and heritage, according to Cara Tomlinson who coordinates an Afrikaner cultural association. 'If I were to go to America, I would have to give up my language and culture for the American language and culture. I would be abandoning my God-given identity as an Afrikaner for something foreign,' Tomlinson, 24, told CNN. Leaving Orania for the US is not on the cards either for 70-year-old retired church minister Sarel Roets, who moved to the town in 2019. Orania provides him 'a quiet, solitary life,' he told CNN. 'When we travel outside Orania in South Africa, it is very common to be looked at with hate,' he added. Both Roets and Tomlinson desire Trump's recognition for Orania, but the legitimacy of the separatist town has been questioned by other South Africans, including members of the radical left-wing party, the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) who say that its 'Afrikaner-only' policy 'institutionalizes exclusion.' South Africa's foreign ministry said Orania had no status as a nation within a nation and remained bound by South African laws. Beyond Orania, other Afrikaners, such as Vos, who's still nursing his injuries, do not plan to leave despite the pressures felt by farmers. 'I'm lucky to be alive,' he said, adding: 'I must look after this place (his farmland), whatever is left. We were born and bred here. South Africa is all we know.' But help must come fast, Vos warned, as he outlined what he hoped Ramaphosa will tell his US opposite number during his visit to the White House. 'We need help in South Africa because you don't know if you're going to wake up tomorrow. It's a mess here,' he said. 'Hopefully, he (Ramaphosa) can be open about everything (with Trump) … and say, 'I'm going to fix it, and I'm going to look after the farmers and the people that are putting food in my mouth.' He must come and do it, implement it, and let's start over again.'
CNN
21-05-2025
- Politics
- CNN
Trump is resettling South Africa's White Afrikaners in the US. Instead, a White separatist town wants his backing for self-rule
A group of 59 White South Africans arrived in the United States last week after being granted refugee status by the White House, which has fast-tracked the processing of Afrikaner refugees but paused refugee applications for other nationalities. On Wednesday, South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa is set to meet his US counterpart Donald Trump in Washington, seeking a reset in relations with the United States. Ties between both nations have been fraught since Trump froze aid to South Africa in February over claims it was mistreating its minority White population. But as thousands more Afrikaners hope for admission to the US, others insist they have no need of refugee status but want America's help instead to tackle a wave of violent crime in South Africa, or even to establish an autonomous state within a state. Joost Strydom leads the group of White South Africans who have dismissed the US' offer of asylum, and heads Orania, a separatist 'Afrikaner-only' settlement in the country's Northern Cape. 'Help us here,' he said his message was to Trump, whom he hopes will recognize Orania's quest for self-determination. 'We don't want to leave here,' he told CNN. 'We don't want to be refugees in the US.' Home to some 3,000 Afrikaners, the 8,000-hectare (19,800-acre) Orania town is partially self-governing. The exclusively White enclave produces half of its own electricity needs, takes local taxes, and prints its own currency that's pegged to the South African rand. But the settlement's residents want more: its recognition as an independent state. Strydom was part of Orania's delegation to the US in late March to push for this goal. 'We met with government officials,' he said. 'The conversation is ongoing, and it is something that we've decided to keep a low profile on.' Orania is backed by a 1994 post-apartheid accord that allowed for Afrikaner self-determination, including the concept of an Afrikaner state, referred to as Volkstaat. Strydom anticipates that the settlement could develop into a 'national home for the Afrikaner people.' Afrikaners are the descendants of predominantly Dutch settlers in South Africa, with White South Africans making up roughly 7% of the country's population as of 2022 – a share that had declined from 11% in 1996, census data shows. A discriminatory apartheid government led by Afrikaners lost power in the mid-1990s, replaced by a multi-party democracy dominated by the African National Congress. At least 67,000 South Africans have shown interest in seeking refugee status in the US, according to the South African Chamber of Commerce in the USA (SACCUSA). In comments justifying his decision to resettle Afrikaners in the US, Trump cited claims that 'a genocide is taking place' in South Africa, adding that 'White farmers are being brutally killed and their land confiscated.' South African authorities have strongly denied such claims. In a statement in February, the South African Police Service said 'only one farmer, who happens to be white,' had been killed between October 1 and December 31, and urged the public 'to desist from assumptions that belong to the past, where farm murders are the same as murders of white farmers.' Police minister Senzo Mchunu stressed in a recent statement that there was no evidence of a 'White genocide' in the country. The police crime figure for the last quarter of 2024 had been disputed by an Afrikaner advocacy group, AfriForum, which argued that five farm owners were murdered during those months and that police had underreported the actual figures. AfriForum has been documenting farm murders in South Africa for years. In its report for 2023, it said there were at least 77 farm attacks and nine murders in the first quarter of that year, almost equaling the 80 attacks and 11 murders it recorded within the same period in 2022. CNN could not independently verify those figures. Most of the attacks happened in Gauteng province, the group stated. Gauteng is home to the largest concentration of South Africa's White population, according to the country's last census in 2022, with about 1.5 million Whites living there. Afrikaner farmer Adriaan Vos is a recent victim of Gauteng's farm attacks. The 55-year-old said he was left fighting for his life just two months ago after being shot on his farm in Glenharvie, a township in Westonaria, West of Gauteng. 'I was shot twice in the knee and once at my back,' Vos said about the attack on his farm in the early hours of March 16. 'Luckily, that bullet stuck next to my lung,' he said, adding that his farmhouse was pillaged and set on fire the same night. Vos could not identify his attackers and is unsure whether the attack was racially motivated. But the raid appears to be part of a pattern of farm attacks that has persisted for years in South Africa, a country grappling with one of the world's highest murder rates. South African authorities rarely publish crime figures by race but local media report that most murder victims are Black. Westonaria police told CNN there are 'no known suspects' in the attack on Vos' farm and 'no clues of who the attackers were.' South African leader Ramaphosa does not believe that Afrikaners are being persecuted – as claimed by Trump and his ally Elon Musk, who was born and raised in the country – and has described those fleeing to the US as 'cowards' who are opposed to his government's efforts to undo the legacy of apartheid, especially inequality. One of those efforts was the controversial enactment in January of an Expropriation Act, which empowers South Africa's government to take land and redistribute it – with no obligation to pay compensation in some instances – if the seizure is found to be 'just and equitable and in the public interest.' Under apartheid, Black South Africans were forcibly dispossessed of their lands for the benefit of Whites. Today, some three decades after racial segregation officially ended in the country, Blacks, who comprise over 80% of the country's population of 63 million, own around 4% of private land while 72% is held by Whites. For some Afrikaners in Orania, there is more to lose than gain if they choose to be refugees in the US. Built from scratch on arid land described by Strydom as 'an abandoned ghost town' with extreme weather, Orania has witnessed infrastructural growth and is the most realistic place to preserve Afrikaner culture and heritage, according to Cara Tomlinson who coordinates an Afrikaner cultural association. 'If I were to go to America, I would have to give up my language and culture for the American language and culture. I would be abandoning my God-given identity as an Afrikaner for something foreign,' Tomlinson, 24, told CNN. Leaving Orania for the US is not on the cards either for 70-year-old retired church minister Sarel Roets, who moved to the town in 2019. Orania provides him 'a quiet, solitary life,' he told CNN. 'When we travel outside Orania in South Africa, it is very common to be looked at with hate,' he added. Both Roets and Tomlinson desire Trump's recognition for Orania, but the legitimacy of the separatist town has been questioned by other South Africans, including members of the radical left-wing party, the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) who say that its 'Afrikaner-only' policy 'institutionalizes exclusion.' South Africa's foreign ministry said Orania had no status as a nation within a nation and remained bound by South African laws. Beyond Orania, other Afrikaners, such as Vos, who's still nursing his injuries, do not plan to leave despite the pressures felt by farmers. 'I'm lucky to be alive,' he said, adding: 'I must look after this place (his farmland), whatever is left. We were born and bred here. South Africa is all we know.' But help must come fast, Vos warned, as he outlined what he hoped Ramaphosa will tell his US opposite number during his visit to the White House. 'We need help in South Africa because you don't know if you're going to wake up tomorrow. It's a mess here,' he said. 'Hopefully, he (Ramaphosa) can be open about everything (with Trump) … and say, 'I'm going to fix it, and I'm going to look after the farmers and the people that are putting food in my mouth.' He must come and do it, implement it, and let's start over again.'
