Latest news with #USreport
News24
6 days ago
- Politics
- News24
SA fires back at US human rights report, calls it ‘fact-free' hypocrisy
SA rejected the state department's human rights report as 'deeply flawed' and accused US of using distorted facts. The dispute centres on US claims about farmworker killings and land expropriation while cases are still in courts. Report highlights US hypocrisy by America which withdrew from UN Human Rights Council. South Africa has launched a scathing counterattack against the US, rejecting a damning human rights report as 'deeply flawed' and turning the spotlight on America's record in a dramatic diplomatic showdown that exposes the politics behind international criticism. On Tuesday, the department of International relations and cooperation registered 'profound disappointment' with the US state department's recent human rights assessment, which claimed SA's situation had 'significantly worsened' and accused government of taking 'substantially worrying steps towards land expropriation of Afrikaners'. Chrispin Phiri, spokesperson for International Relations and Co-operation Minister Ronald Lamola, expressed fury over what he called fundamental distortions, including the US citing a case where farmworkers were allegedly killed and fed to pigs as an 'extrajudicial killing' despite the matter being actively adjudicated by SA's independent judiciary. The report's reliance on a-contextual information and distorted facts is highly concerning. We register our profound disappointment with this report. We reject it, it's inaccurate and deeply flawed. This is not only premature but a fundamental distortion of the facts, as the individuals are formally arraigned before a court of law. Chrispin Phiri In a pointed counterattack, SA questioned America's moral authority to judge other nations, highlighting that the US had withdrawn from the UN Human Rights Council and 'therefore no longer sees itself accountable in a multilateral peer review system'. Significant and documented concerns about human rights within the US, including the treatment of refugees and breaches in due process by its agencies, such as the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. According to The Guardian newspaper, the controversy reflects a broader pattern under Donald Trump's administration, which has dramatically softened criticism of some countries that have been strong partners of the Republican president, such as El Salvador and Israel, which rights groups say have well-established histories of abuses. Instead, the US state department has 'stepped-up criticism of Brazil and SA, both of which Washington has clashed with over a host of issues'. The publication noted that criticism of governments over LGBTQ+ rights, prominent in former president Joe Biden administration's reports, 'appeared to have been largely omitted' from Trump's version. The diplomatic spat highlights stark contradictions in international assessments. While the US condemned the Land Expropriation Act, the UN Human Rights Office in Geneva, Switzerland, praised the same legislation as a 'critical step in addressing the country's racially imbalanced land ownership'. This recognition from the UN's primary human rights body underscores the integrity of our legislative processes aimed at rectifying historical injustices in a constitutional and human-rights-based manner. Chrispin Phiri The US report accused SA of multiple violations, including arbitrary killings, detention, repression of racial minorities and inflammatory rhetoric against the Afrikaners. It claimed government failed to take 'credible steps to investigate, prosecute and punish officials who committed human rights abuses'. However, SA pointed to its transparency. Transparent systems, where information is freely available from our law enforcement agencies and Chapter 9 institutions, which are constitutionally mandated to protect and advance human rights. The controversy extends beyond SA. In Brazil, where Trump has clashed with the government over former president Jair Bolsonaro's legal troubles, the US found the human rights situation had declined after previously reporting 'no significant changes'. Trump has called Bolsonaro's prosecution for allegedly conspiring to overturn his 2022 election loss a 'witch-hunt' and threatened 50% tariffs on Brazilian goods. SA announced it would release 'a set of documents for public perusal during the week' to provide 'a complete and accurate picture' and counter what it called US distortions. Government pointed to reports from reputable sources, including the AFP fact-checks and BBC coverage, as evidence supporting their position on contested cases. The diplomatic clash reveals how human rights assessments have become increasingly politicised tools in international relations, with countries using moral authority as leverage against rivals while protecting allies from similar scrutiny.
Al Arabiya
6 days ago
- Business
- Al Arabiya
South Africa denounces ‘deeply flawed' US human rights report
South Africa has condemned what it called a 'deeply flawed' US report on its human rights record, issued just days after the Trump administration imposed 30 percent tariffs on many of the country's exports. In its annual human rights report released Tuesday, the US State Department accused South Africa of taking 'a substantially worrying step toward land expropriation of Afrikaners and further abuses against racial minorities.' Pretoria's foreign ministry expressed 'profound disappointment' over the findings, saying the report was 'an inaccurate and deeply flawed account' that failed to reflect the reality of its constitutional democracy. A law signed this year by President Cyril Ramaphosa — and criticized by Trump — allows land expropriation without compensation in rare cases. Land ownership remains a contentious issue, with most farmland still owned by white South Africans three decades after the end of apartheid. South Africa, Washington's third-largest trading partner in sub-Saharan Africa, is seeking a deal to preserve tens of thousands of jobs in its agricultural, automotive, and textile sectors that depend heavily on the US market.
Bloomberg
03-07-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Analysis of US Jobs Report for June
Welcome to TOPLive's coverage of the US employment report for June. The nation's job market has shown resilience amid uncertain economic circumstances, albeit with some indicators exhibiting a bit of softness. At the halfway point of 2025, and five months into Donald Trump's second term as president, let's take a look at what the latest numbers have to say. Join us starting at 8:15 a.m. New York time, 15 minutes before the report comes out, for news, analysis and market reaction.
