Relations between South Africa and the US have been on shaky ground amid false claims of a white genocide from the Trump administration.
More Afrikaners reportedly continue to leave South Africa for the United States as part of the Afrikaner resettlement programme offered by President Donald Trump.
The US embassy in Pretoria reportedly told News24 that it is reviewing inquiries from South Africans who are interested in settling in the US and is “reaching out to eligible individuals for refugee interviews and processing”.
Afrikaner “refugees” continue to arrive in the US on commercial flights, the embassy reportedly told the publication.
SA-US relations
Relations between South Africa and the US have been on shaky ground amid false claims of a white genocide from the Trump administration and the signing of the Expropriation Bill.
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Last month, a charter plane carrying 49 Afrikaners who were granted refugee status by the Trump administration to save them from the “terrible things that are happening in South Africa” departed.
They were welcomed by Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau.
“This tremendous accomplishment, at the direction of Secretary Rubio, responds to President Trump’s call to prioritise US refugee resettlement of this vulnerable group facing unjust racial discrimination in South Africa,” said Tammy Bruce, spokesperson for the United States Department of State, at the time.
“Today, the United States sends a clear message, in alignment with the administration’s America First foreign policy agenda, that America will take action to protect victims of racial discrimination. We stand with these refugees as they build a better future for themselves and their children in the United States.
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“No one should have to fear having their property seized without compensation or becoming the victim of violent attacks because of their ethnicity. In the coming months, we will continue to welcome more Afrikaner refugees and help them rebuild their lives in our great country.”
Government on Afrikaner ‘refugees’
At the time, the South African government could not confirm if another group would depart.
“It’s not our job to be briefing on when they’re moving. You must go to [AfriForum CEO] Mr Kallie Kriel, Solidarity and those groupings for those updates. Our job is to make sure that when they leave, they don’t leave any debt or crime in the country,” said Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni following the group’s departure.
“We all know the reasons they are leaving are not true. As the Cabinet, we express the view that they do not meet the criteria for refugee status, and there is no violence against farmers. Check that list and check how many of those people are actual farmers because the argument is that there is a genocide against farmers in South Africa.”
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