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BBC News
a day ago
- Politics
- BBC News
The Documentary Podcast No, there isn't a ‘white genocide' in South Africa
On 12 May, 59 Afrikaners arrived in Washington to receive 'refugee' status. At a press conference, President Trump said he had acted because Afrikaners - the white minority community that ruled South Africa during apartheid - face an existential threat. His words echoed the views of his South African born former adviser, Elon Musk, who has repeatedly used his X platform to amplify false claims of a 'white genocide'. Many South Africans, including several Afrikaners that we have spoken to, dismiss the idea that they are under attack as wild misinformation. So where does the idea that white South Africans are being uniquely targeted come from? And what impact is it having on the diplomatic relationship between the White House and Pretoria? This episode of The Documentary, comes to you from BBC Trending in-depth reporting on the world of social media.
The Independent
02-06-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Trump admin plans to resettle ‘thousands' of white South Africans in US this summer, report says
President Donald Trump is planning on resettling 'thousands' of white South Africans in the U.S., a State Department official has revealed in a new report. Earlier this month, Trump granted a group of 59 white South Africans entry to the United States as ' refugees.' Afterwards, Trump was accused of ambushing South African President Cyril Ramaphosa with claims of a 'white genocide' by flashing articles and videos of alleged violence against white farmers in the country. Several pieces of evidence that Trump provided were found to be misleading, incorrect, or entirely unrelated to his claims. Now, a government official has told that the number of white Afrikaner refugees is expected to surge 'towards the second half of summer.' 'We won't be talking about dozens of arrivals, but hundreds and perhaps thousands,' the official told the outlet. The White House has not commented on the matter. The official said that he was 'confident in saying that [...] towards the second half of summer, we'll start to massively scale this up.' The State Department said on Thursday that it had received nearly 50,000 inquiries from South Africans interested in the program, according to the New York Times. The Trump administration expects the number to 'continue to rise,' according to The Caller. In March, Trump claimed that 'South Africa is being terrible, plus, to long-time Farmers in the country. 'They are confiscating their LAND and FARMS, and MUCH WORSE THAN THAT,' he wrote on Truth Social. The timing of his tirade came as Trump and the world's richest man, and South African Tesla billionaire, Elon Musk, were closely tied thanks to the latter's role with the Department of Government Efficiency. The news of this resettlement comes as the Trump administration continues its efforts to ramp up arrests of undocumented immigrants. Meanwhile, dozens of people who are legally permitted to be in the U.S. have also been caught in the crossfire of Trump's immigration crusade, prompting stark criticism about the rushed nature of mass deportations. Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Trump's administration could temporarily revoke the legal status of over 500,000 migrants living in the U.S.
The Herald
02-06-2025
- 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.
Mail & Guardian
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Mail & Guardian
The legal position of the 49 Afrikaner ‘refugees': Sorts facts and misinformation
Afrikaner refugees from South Africa holding American flags arrive, Monday, May 12, 2025, at Dulles International Airport in Dulles, Va. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson) In recent months, the case of the 49 white South Africans, widely described as Afrikaner 'refugees', has ignited a global conversation. They were granted asylum in the United States after It is important that we clarify that these claims are not only false; they are dangerous. Let us be clear, there is no white genocide in South Africa. There is no legally valid refugee claim to be made by these individuals under either South African law or international conventions. And there is no monolithic, endangered 'Afrikaner' identity under siege. What we have here is a cynical distortion of fact, history and law. A distortion that threatens to undermine South Africa's social cohesion and the integrity of international refugee systems. South Africa's crime levels are high. But these numbers must be contextualised. The overwhelming majority of murder victims are black South Africans. Farm attacks, though often politicised, make up less than 0.3% of total murders annually. It is true that violent crime affects everyone in South Africa. But there is no statistical or credible factual basis for the claim that white South Africans face racial extermination. Quite to the contrary. Statistically a white South African is proportionally less likely to be murdered than a black South African is. This is not genocide. This is a national crime problem that affects all citizens, regardless of race. Regarding international law, the legal framework for determining refugee status is unambiguous. Article 1(A)(2) of the This definition excludes people fleeing general crime, economic hardship or declining social standing. For a refugee claim to be valid, there must be state persecution or a credible fear thereof based on protected grounds. In the case of the 49 who went to the US, no such evidence exists. Under the The Act explicitly excludes those fleeing general crime or economic insecurity, aligning with the There is no South African law, government policy or public practice that targets white South Africans. The South African government is meant to protect all citizens equally under the White people continue to occupy leading positions in business, law and agriculture. They remain represented economically and politically, and not oppressed. Even if generalised crime were a basis, which it is not, the state's ability to offer protection must be considered. The police services, albeit overstretched, do respond to and investigate crimes involving white victims, including farm attacks. No credible evidence suggests that white South Africans are refused police assistance because of their race. Finally, The US's decision to grant these 49 refugee status was not the product of legal merit. It was a political gesture. Respected analysts have pointed out the hypocrisy. Bill Frelick, of the Human Rights Watch, The 49 were flown out of a middle-income democracy in under three months. Compounding this failure is the international media's role in amplifying the false narrative. While some reputable outlets such as The New York Times and radio broadcaster NPR contextualised the situation, many others It is also important to note that the refugee narrative rests on a narrow, racially defined conception of the term 'Afrikaner' — a conception that does not pass historical or linguistic muster. People of mixed origin at the Cape referred to themselves as Afrikaners because they no longer could identify with the countries they originally came from. Afrikaans is a South African language with deep multicultural roots. It evolved not only from 17th-century Dutch, but also from Malay, Khoisan, Portuguese and African influences. The first written Afrikaans was an Arabic script, used by Muslim scholars at the Cape. To claim persecution of 'Afrikaners' as a racial group ignores the inclusive and evolving reality of Afrikaans identity. The language is one of South Africa's 12 official languages. It thrives in literature, music and education, and particularly in historically brown communities. The claim that 'Afrikaner culture' is being extinguished is not only false, it is dismissive of the millions of non-white South Africans who have built and sustained that culture. This case matters not just because of the lies being told, but because of the harm they cause. Every false claim of genocide trivialises the plight of genuine refugees around the world. Every false claim of racial persecution damages the credibility of international law and undermines the real transformation work still needed in South Africa. The FW de Klerk Foundation stands firmly against these distortions. We affirm that no South African citizen is being persecuted on the basis of race. We affirm the integrity of our Constitution, the legitimacy of our courts and the shared future of all South Africans, whether black, brown, Indian or white. As President FW de Klerk Let the world take note: South Africa is not perfect, but it is not a country of racial persecution. It is a country working — daily, deliberately and democratically — towards a future where truth matters more than fear and unity matters more than political spectacle. Ismail Joosub is a research intern at the FW de Klerk Foundation.
Al Jazeera
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Why is Donald Trump fixated on South Africa?
The administration of US President Donald Trump has granted refugee status to 49 white Afrikaners, echoing a debunked conspiracy theory about 'white genocide' in South Africa. The move comes after Trump cut aid to the nation and threatened to boycott meetings with its government. What's behind Trump's fixation on South Africa?
