Latest news with #Solidarity
The Herald
17 hours ago
- General
- The Herald
Words matter, as ‘white genocide' lies show
There is a proverb in the Setswana language that I wish I could translate properly, but I don't think I can. It goes: 'Lefoko ga le boe, go boa monwana.' Literally, it means: 'You cannot take back or retract words you have uttered against someone. A pointed finger, or a gesture, can however be retracted.' The important part of this expression is that words matter. Words uttered and words amplified matter. Once released into the world, words are incredibly difficult to recall or erase. People are made by words we utter, and people are broken by words we release into the world. Words uttered thoughtlessly can break people, businesses, governments. Words chosen carefully can save reputations, avert wars, build empires. Over the past week, I have attended several events in New York. These events have cut across class, race, age and gender. All of them have brought home to me just how much damage has been done to SA by the thoughtless, racist, white supremacist, and utterly false allegations that there is a 'white genocide' in SA when there is patently none taking place here. These lies, whipped up and fanned in SA and internationally by utterly shameless, cynical and unethical organisations such as AfriForum and Solidarity, have been transmitted to dimwits like American broadcaster Tucker Carlson who has, like a faithful dog, then placed them at the feet of US President Donald Trump. Two weeks ago, armed with these lies, the most powerful man in the world ambushed South African President Cyril Ramaphosa with pictures from the DRC and a misleading video, and claimed that this was evidence of these 'deaths' in SA. The SA Police Services last week released figures showing that in the first quarter of this year, five of six farmers were killed in SA. That's not a white genocide. It's murder of ordinary South Africans, all suffering under the scourge of crime. The point is that these lies of a non-existent 'white genocide' were uttered in the White House and reported across the globe. From Moscow to Beijing, from Havana to São Paulo, from Maputo to Cairo, the world was watching. And the world heard the most powerful man in the world lie to the world that there is a 'white genocide' in SA even though there is none. Words matter. Words carry. Words stick. Certainly, these false allegations of a genocide of white South Africans have stuck. Anecdotally, I see this everywhere. In the past week an immigration officer in New York asked a (white) friend of mine coming to SA: 'Is it true whites are being killed in SA?' At a school in New York, an Albanian asked me: 'Is it true white farmers are being slaughtered in SA?' At a Japanese restaurant I was asked: 'What are you guys doing in SA? Did you hear what President Trump said?' Many others joked about the scandalous encounter and utterances in the White House during the ambush of Ramaphosa. For the next decade I expect South Africans to be confronted by these lies whenever they travel across the world. I wonder how the so-called leaders of outfits like Solidarity and AfriForum sleep at night knowing they have lied to the world so much. On the other hand, why am I so naive as to expect that these hollow men still have a conscience? Here is another proverb: 'Lies have short legs.' It means that lies don't last long in life and that without corroboration and support, a lie cannot be sustained. When a lie is uttered from the White House not once, not twice, but almost weekly for four months, it reverberates across the world for a significant period of time. SA's brand has been badly damaged by these lies. I used to arrive at an immigration point on my travels across the world and people would smile at me and say 'Nelson Mandela'. Now, thanks to AfriForum and Solidarity and their lies, black South Africans are being asked if they are genocidaires. There can be nothing sicker than this — black South Africans, and black women in particular, are the most affected by all these crimes. SA now needs a robust strategy across the world to push back against these lies. This effort to counter the besmirching of SA's name needs to cut across from businesses to diplomats to ordinary citizens of the world. We have half a million Americans visiting SA every year — let's ensure they go back to their country as ambassadors for SA. Let's ensure they go home with a single message: it's a lie — SA is beautiful and there is no genocide there. We must be very clear, though. This assault on SA has been deeply damaging and will continue to be so. This assault on SA will continue, led by the relentless hate fanned by AfriForum and Solidarity. Huge damage has been done. Fixing it won't be easy because words are hard to erase.
IOL News
17 hours ago
- Politics
- IOL News
More Afrikaners leave for the US
US President Donald Trump. Image: AFP US president Donald Trump was aware there was no white genocide in South Africa but wanted to use the claim to get his way. This was the view of International relations expert Rich Mashimbye who asserted that even if Trump was advised otherwise, it would not make a difference. This comes as Mark Burns, a close ally of Trump, returned from a visit to South Africa with a message contradicting claims of genocide against white farmers in the country. Burns, who is the founder and CEO of the NOW television network, met with white Afrikaner farmers and business owners during his trip and concluded that there was no evidence to support the claims of genocide. It also comes as a second, small batch of white Afrikaners quietly arrived in the US on Friday as part of Trump's offer to resettle them amidst false claims of white genocide and persecution in South Africa. While spokesperson for the Department of International Relations and Cooperation Chrispin Phiri said they are not aware of the second batch of Afrikaners landing in the US, trade union Solidarity said the group, smaller than the first to arrive in the US, included children. Last month the first group of more than 49 white South African Afrikaners landed in the US after a private plane was chartered for them. Trump in February had issued an executive order where Washington cited the Expropriation Act 13 of 2024 as one that enables the persecution of Afrikaners. Solidarity spokesperson Jaco Kleynhans said the second group departed on a commercial flight on Thursday that landed in Atlanta in the US on Friday. 'Several more groups will fly to the USA over the next few weeks. 'The US Embassy in Pretoria, in collaboration with the State Department in Washington DC, is currently processing 8000 applications, and we expect many more Afrikaner refugees to travel to the USA over the next few months. "They are settling in states across the USA, but particularly southern states such as Texas, North and South Carolina, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Nebraska,' Kleynhans said. President Cyril Ramaphosa had attempted to fend off false claims of white genocide in South Africa when Trump ambushed him with videos and articles to prove his narrative that white farmers were being targeted for their land. The unexpected stunt turned the usually staid diplomatic setting of the Oval Office into a stage for Trump's contention that white South Africans are being persecuted. Reports indicate that the US embassy in South Africa is aware that 'refugees continue to arrive in the US from South Africa on commercial flights as part of the Afrikaner resettlement programme's ongoing operations'. Solidarity said it has helped some people understand the application process better and referred them to the right people at the US embassy. They have also assisted the US government in determining the criteria for Afrikaner refugee status. Kleynhans said he was campaigning in at least ten countries to increase international pressure on the SA government in the run-up to the G20 summit. Kallie Kriel, AfriForum's CEO, said he did not know the Afrikaners who were leaving because they applied directly to the US embassy. According to Mashimbye, for a while, the SA-US diplomatic tensions centred around the Trump-led government's accusations that the Ramaphosa government was persecuting white South Africans and confiscating land from Afrikaner farmers while remaining silent. He said it did not matter what people said because Trump was aware there was no white genocide in South Africa but wanted to use the claim to get his way. 'As president of a country with one the largest embassies that is fully staffed in South Africa, Trump has access to all the information he requires about South Africa's transformation project and he likely knows that the issues of land reform and crime dynamics are not as has been portrayed so far. 'He knows that there is no genocide happening nor confiscation of white-owned farms in South Africa. It is likely that the diplomatic attacks directed at South Africa are aimed at discouraging the Ramaphosa government from robustly executing the transformation project,' he said. Political analyst Sandile Swana said Burns' public statements were encouraging and showed that not everyone in Trump's camp agreed with him. 'To me they represent signs from the Trump's camp… that they have to tell a different story, which they are now doing…and a different story they are now telling is that whatever crime that is happening, is not a genocide but just crime that needs to be attended to." Cape Times
New York Times
a day ago
- General
- New York Times
Poland's Presidential Election Goes Down to the Wire
A pivotal presidential election on Sunday in Poland was too close to call, with exit polls putting the two contenders nearly neck and neck as voting ended and an official count of the ballots began. Rafal Trzaskowski, the liberal mayor of Warsaw, appeared to be narrowly ahead in the runoff election, but by such a small margin that it was unclear whether he would prevail in the official vote tally due on Monday. Mr. Trzaskowski nonetheless claimed victory. 'Dear ladies and gentlemen — we won!' he declared to supporters Sunday evening in Warsaw. 'I think that the term 'razor-thin victory' will enter the Polish language.' The results of usually reliable exit polling, broadcast by public and private television stations Sunday evening after polling stations closed, gave Mr. Trzaskowsk a tiny advantage, with 50.3 percent of the vote. His rival, Karol Nawrocki, a nationalist historian backed by Poland's previous right-wing governing party, Law and Justice, had 49.7 percent. Mr. Nawrocki told his own supporters after the exit poll data came out that the official results would show him to be the victor. 'Dear people, we will win,' he said. 'Tonight we will win and save Poland.' The turnout was 72.8 percent, the highest in a Polish presidential election since the first free and direct vote for the presidency in 1990, when Lech Walesa, the Solidarity trade union leader, won after the collapse of communism. The election has been widely viewed as a test of whether populist nationalism is a rising or receding force in Europe and beyond. A hard fought campaign drew in supporters and foes of President Trump on both sides of the Atlantic. The Trump administration, along with Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary and other right-wing politicians, including the defeated Trump-admiring nationalist candidate in a recent presidential election in Romania, were rooting for Mr. Nawrocki. Europe's mainstream political forces supported Mr. Trzaskowski. The election hinged on the question of whether Polish voters want a president who can work with the sitting government of Poland's centrist prime minister, Donald Tusk, or one who opposes it. The closeness of the race highlighted Poland's polarization between right-wing nationalist forces opposed to Mr. Tusk and centrists who support him. The election of Mr. Trzaskowski, who was backed by Mr. Tusk's party, Civic Platform, would likely end a long period of political deadlock that began when Law and Justice lost its majority in Parliament in a 2023 election but retained control of the separately elected presidency. The presidency is a largely ceremonial role, but the president has veto power over legislation passed by Parliament. The departing, term-limited president, Andrzej Duda, used this power to obstruct efforts by Mr. Tusk's government to reverse the legacy of eight years of populist rule by Law and Justice. A win for Mr. Nawrocki would continue and even harden this deadlock. Anatol Magdziarz contributed reporting.
IOL News
a day ago
- Politics
- IOL News
More Afrikaners take up Trump's resettlement offer, thousands of applications being processed
The second batch of Afrikaner refugees arrived in the US on Friday. Pictured are US President Donald Trump and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, during a meeting which aimed to clear misinformation about genocide claims. Image: Jim WATSON / AFP About 8000 applications have been made by Afrikaners to the US embassy to resettle in that country. The Afrikaners are taking up President Donald Trump's offer to resettle them amidst false claims of white genocide and persecution in South Africa. Another small batch of Afrikaners arrived in the US on Friday after an initial group of 49 left the country last month. Trump issued an executive order in February where Washington cited the Expropriation Act 13 of 2024 as one that enables the persecution of Afrikaners. Solidarity's Jaco Kleynhans said the second group departed on a commercial flight on Thursday that landed in Atlanta in the US on Friday. 'It is a smaller group, including children. Several more groups will fly to the USA over the next few weeks. The US Embassy in Pretoria, in collaboration with the State Department in Washington DC, is currently processing 8,000 applications, and we expect many more Afrikaner refugees to travel to the USA over the next few months. "They are settling in states across the USA, but particularly southern states such as Texas, North and South Carolina, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Nebraska,' Kleynhans said. Reports indicate that the US embassy in South Africa is aware that 'refugees continue to arrive in the United States from South Africa on commercial flights as part of the Afrikaner resettlement programme's ongoing operations'. Solidarity said it has helped some people understand the application process better and referred them to the right people at the US embassy. They have also assisted the US government in determining the criteria for Afrikaner refugee status. Video Player is loading. 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Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ 'Our primary focus is not refugee status for Afrikaners, but rather to find ways to ensure a free, safe, and prosperous future for Afrikaners in South Africa. We remain 100% convinced that South Africa can and must create a home for all its people,' Kleynhans said. He added that at least 20% of Afrikaners have already left the country 'because if they stayed, they would have been unemployed'. Kleynhans said he was campaigning in at least ten countries to increase international pressure on the SA government in the run-up to the G20 summit. On criticism that this refugee path is politically motivated, Kleynhans said: 'The American refugee programs are paid for by American taxpayers and it is outrageous that international organisations and foreign groups think they can dictate to the Trump administration who should be eligible for refugee status. If Americans disagree with Trump on this, they can elect a different president in three years." Kallie Kriel, AfriForum's CEO, said he did not know the Afrikaners who were leaving because they applied directly to the US embassy. 'Our view is not to condemn people (who are) leaving, but rather to condemn the circumstances in the country that have led to this, such as hateful chants, like 'Kill the Boer'," he said. Kriel added that matters were compounded by the government, including the president and courts, which failed to condemn the chant. He acknowledged that everyone in the country has challenges, but said Afrikaners felt threatened by the open call for such violence with the 'Kill the Boer' chant. 'No community should be targeted through calls for violence. Also taking away the future of young people who now have to go into the labour market, but then are discriminated against based on their skin colour. 'We want to address that, and that is why we are vocal, because we want to make sure that South Africa truly belongs to all who live in it,' Kriel said. Professor Siphamandla Zondi, a political analyst from the University of Johannesburg, said the US's welcoming of the second batch of white Afrikaners should not surprise anyone, especially in the absence of a change of US policy. 'We should expect more and more poor Afrikaners to take advantage of this to get a free pass to the US in search of basic jobs, which ordinarily would prove difficult to get visas for,' Zondi said.
IOL News
a day ago
- Politics
- IOL News
Second group of white Afrikaners arrives in the US amid Trump's resettlement offer
The second batch of Afrikaner refugees arrived in the US on Friday. Pictured are US President Donald Trump and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, during a meeting which aimed to clear misinformation about genocide claims. A small batch of white Afrikaners quietly arrived in the US on Friday, as part of President Donald Trump's offer to resettle them amidst false claims of white genocide and persecution in South Africa. They are part of 8,000 who will be resettled within the next few months, according to Jaco Kleynhans, head of Public Relations for trade union Solidarity. Last month the first group of more than 49 white South African Afrikaners landed in the United States after a private plane was chartered for them. This after Trump in February issued an executive order where Washington cited the Expropriation Act 13 of 2024 as one that enables the persecution of Afrikaners. Kleynhans said the second group departed on a commercial flight on Thursday that landed in Atlanta in the US on Friday. 'It is a smaller group, including children. Several more groups will fly to the USA over the next few weeks. The US Embassy in Pretoria, in collaboration with the State Department in Washington DC, is currently processing 8,000 applications, and we expect many more Afrikaner refugees to travel to the USA over the next few months. "They are settling in states across the USA, but particularly southern states such as Texas, North and South Carolina, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Nebraska,' Kleynhans said. Reports indicate that the US embassy in South Africa is aware that 'refugees continue to arrive in the United States from South Africa on commercial flights as part of the Afrikaner resettlement programme's ongoing operations'. Solidarity said it has helped some people understand the application process better and referred them to the right people at the US embassy. They have also assisted the US government in determining the criteria for Afrikaner refugee status.
