Latest news with #SolidarityUnion
IOL News
22-05-2025
- Politics
- IOL News
Misleading 'white crosses' video: Solidarity responds to Trump's genocide claims
US President Donald Trump hands papers, purporting to be evidence of a white genocide in South Africa, to President Cyril Ramaphosa during a meeting in the Oval Office in Washington on Wednesday. Image: AFP The AfriForum's aligned Solidarity Union described the video shown by US President Donald Trump, as video evidence of mass atrocities and genocide carried out against white Afrikaner farmers in South Africa as misleading. President Cyril Ramaphosa, with his delegation that included popular South African golfers Ernie Els, Retief Goosen and businessman Johann Rupert, met with Trump on Wednesday to try and mend ties between the two nations. Trump ambushed Ramaphosa during a tense exchange with a series of contested claims about the killings of white farmers in South Africa, referring to it as white genocide. The US President asked for a montage of video clips to be played, which showed EFF president Julius Malema chanting 'Kill the Boer' and footage that showed rows of crosses, which Trump said were the graves of white people. "People are fleeing South Africa for their own safety. Their land is being confiscated, and in many cases, they're being killed," Trump said. Responding to the footage, Ramaphosa asked Trump if he knew this was, saying he had never seen it before. Trump insisted it was in South Africa. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ However, head of international liaison at Solidarity Jaco Kleynhans said the video was not related to a white genocide, saying that the footage was shot in 2020 after one incident of farm murders near Newcastle in KwaZulu-Natal. 'The footage that Trump showed was that of another event and it's not graves, it's just a series of crosses.…There was a misunderstanding. Farmers were protesting against farm killings. 'In this case there had been a farm murder where a farmer and his wife were killed during a robbery," he said. Kleynhans did stress, however, that there a memorial had been erected 30 years ago between Polokwane and Mokopane in Limpopo that pays homage to farmers that have been killed on their farms. 'The memorial is next to the N1 on a farm between Polokwane and Mokopane. There are around 3,000 crosses for everyone that died in farm attacks in the last 30 years,' Kleynhans said. He said the memorial, which consisted of about 3,000 small crosses that form the shape of a large cross, was not exclusively for white farmers but anybody that had been killed on a farm. 'The vast majority, more than 90%, are Afrikaner farmers. But it is not exclusively Afrikaners and the crosses are not just for Afrikaners who died in farm attacks. He said white farmers make up 0,03% of the South African population (25,000 out of 63 million) but 1% of all murders in 2024 were of farmers. He added that this did not translate to a fully fledged genocide but he blamed the government for not prioritising farm murders. 'We believe farmers, and especially white Afrikaner farmers are targeted and affected by farm attacks brought about by a deliberate effort by the government not to ensure safety in rural, farm areas, an unwillingness by the police to safeguard farming communities and the continued use of hate songs that encourage violence against white farmers. 'This is not yet a full-fledged genocide, but is a dangerous precursor to greater violence that could ultimately lead to genocide,' he said. He said since the government dismantled the commando units, an armed unit that was designed to protect farmers, farm murders had increased. 'There has been negligence in farm safety. The president has not done much to protect farmers. We are not saying that other murders are less serious. We are just saying that farm attacks must also be prioritised.
IOL News
19-05-2025
- Politics
- IOL News
Ntshavheni faces legal action over misinformation claims against Solidarity
The Minister in the Presidency, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni faces claims by union Solidarity Union over defamation and treason. Image: Itumeleng English / Independent Newspapers Minister in the Presidency, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, has not indicated whether she will withdraw her assertions about the spreading of misinformation by Solidarity, but stated that she will consult with her legal team if she receives any legal papers from the organisation. Solidarity said it had launched legal action against the minister accusing her of defamation over her claims of spreading misinformation. The minister has been given seven days to withdraw a media statement made on March 27, 2025, and offer an unconditional apology to Solidarity for reputational damage. In a formal legal notice served to Ntshavheni, the organisation's CEO Dirk Hermann demanded that she apologise or face defamation and treason charges; failure to do so would result in the union pursuing more legal charges. The controversy began when Ntshavheni accused Solidarity and AfriForum of waging a "misinformation and disinformation campaign" during their joint visit to the US. Hermann described the accusations as absurd and part of a campaign to deflect attention from diplomatic relations between South Africa and the US. "It all started on the 3rd of February when the ANC said in a press release that AfriForum was guilty of spreading misinformation," Hermann said. Hermann further emphasised that Ntshavheni's accusations were made without evidence, yet she used them to justify law enforcement action against Solidarity and AfriForum. "Without providing any facts, the minister in the presidency said that the cabinet takes note of the continued misinformation and that the acts of treason cannot be left unpunished," Hermann added. The situation escalated when Ntshavheni described Solidarity's actions as "treasonous" and a threat to national sovereignty. She proposed the regulating of civil society organisations, which Solidarity views as an attack on freedom of speech and association. Law enforcement agencies are currently investigating treason charges against Solidarity and AfriForum based on Ntshavheni's allegations. Solidarity has denounced Ntshavheni's statements, calling them an attempt to silence organisations that challenge prevailing state ideologies. Hermann warned that if Ntshavheni fails to meet their demands, further legal action will follow. "This unfounded narrative needs to stop before the real problems can be addressed," Hermann said. The legal action against Ntshavheni comes amid strained diplomatic relations between South Africa and the US. The US had expelled former South African ambassador Ebrahim Rasool in March, declaring him persona non grata for criticising Trump. The appointment of a new ambassador is still pending, with Mcebisi Jonas serving as special envoy to the US. Independent legal expert Shadrack Moyo said Solidarity may have a case if they are able to prove that Ntshavheni's assertions were damaging to the organisation. 'If the organisation is able to show the court that they suffered reputational damages, then they may have a case and Ntshavheni may be forced to apologise to the organisations. But they would have to prove that (beyond reasonable doubt),' Moyo said. Cape Times
IOL News
18-05-2025
- Politics
- IOL News
Solidarity gives Minister Ntshavheni 7-day ultimatum to 'withdraw defamatory statements'
The Minister in the Presidency, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni faces claims by union Solidarity Union over defamation and treason. Image: Itumeleng English / Independent Newspapers Solidarity has launched legal action against Minister in the Presidency, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, accusing her of defamation over her claims of spreading misinformation. The minister has been given seven days to withdraw a media statement made on March 27, 2025, and offer an unconditional apology to Solidarity for reputational damage. In a formal legal notice served to Ntshavheni, the organisation's CEO Dirk Hermann demanded that she apologise or face defamation and treason charges; failure to do so would result in the union pursuing more legal charges. The controversy began when Ntshavheni accused Solidarity and AfriForum of waging a "misinformation and disinformation campaign" during their joint visit to the US. Hermann described the accusations as absurd and part of a campaign to deflect attention from diplomatic relations between South Africa and the US. "It all started on the 3rd of February when the ANC said in a press release that AfriForum was guilty of spreading misinformation," Hermann said. Hermann further emphasised that Ntshavheni's accusations were made without evidence, yet she used them to justify law enforcement action against Solidarity and AfriForum. "Without providing any facts, the minister in the presidency said that the cabinet takes note of the continued misinformation and that the acts of treason cannot be left unpunished," Hermann added. The situation escalated when Ntshavheni described Solidarity's actions as "treasonous" and a threat to national sovereignty. She proposed regulating civil society organisations, which Solidarity views as an attack on freedom of speech and association. Law enforcement agencies are currently investigating treason charges against Solidarity and AfriForum based on Ntshavheni's allegations. Solidarity has denounced Ntshavheni's statements, calling them an attempt to silence organisations that challenge prevailing state ideologies. Hermann warned that if Ntshavheni fails to meet their demands, further legal action will follow without hesitation. "This unfounded narrative needs to stop before the real problems can be addressed," Hermann said. Ntshavheni has not indicated whether she will withdraw her assertions but has stated that she will consult with her legal team if she receives any legal papers from Solidarity. The legal action against Ntshavheni comes amid strained diplomatic relations between South Africa and the US. The US had expelled former South African ambassador Ebrahim Rasool in March, declaring him persona non grata for criticising Trump. The appointment of a new ambassador is still pending, with Mcebisi Jonas serving as special envoy to the US. Adding fuel to the fire are media reports that have been reporting negatively on Solidarity and Afriforum's visit to the US. In late April, the Press Ombudsman ruled against one media platform for publishing misleading assertions about the two groups. Independent legal expert Shadrack Moyo said Solidarity may have a case if they are able to prove that Ntshavheni's assertions were damaging to the organisation. 'If the organisation is able to show the court that they suffered reputational damages, then they may have a case and Ntshavheni may be forced to apologise to the organisations. But they would have to prove that (beyond resonable doubt),' Moyo said. [email protected]
