13-05-2025
EFF calls on National Assembly to denounce persecution claims by Afrikaners granted refugee status in US
CAPE TOWN - The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) on Tuesday called on the National Assembly to denounce persecution claims by white Afrikaners who arrived in the United States on Monday under the pretence of being refugees.
In a statement to the House on Tuesday afternoon, party whip, Poppy Mailola, said that their citizenship should be revoked.
The United Democratic Movement (UDM) has equally expressed its condemnation of the group, saying it was untrue that they were fleeing from violence in South Africa.
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The group of 49, which includes families and children, were welcomed at the Dulles Airport in Washington, D.C. on Monday by the deputy secretaries of state and homeland security and encouraged to live the American dream.
US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau said the group granted refugee status in the US had shared "harrowing" tales of the violence they had endured in South Africa upon their arrival.
But on Tuesday, some MPs cast doubt on their stories.
Mailola said that by lifting its refugee moratorium to grant entry to the group, the US was trying to delegitimise South Africa's support for the Palestinian cause.
"That this House rejects the notion that there's any persecution of any racial group that would warrant refugee-seeking status in any nation, and that redress within the confines of the Constitution and rule of law, does not constitute discrimination."
The UDM's Nqabayomzi Kwankwa said the group were suffering from apartheid nostalgia.
"They are not refugees. They are fleeing a South Africa that strives for justice and inclusivity. They are running away from a country determined to heal and more equal."
On Tuesday, US media reported that the Episcopal Church in the US would not be helping to resettle the group as requested by Trump's administration, saying the church was committed to racial justice and reconciliation and given its historic ties with the Anglican Church of Southern Africa.
