Former President Trump’s recent decree aims to reduce U.S. aid to South Africa in response to a land expropriation law by President Ramaphosa. The law seeks to address historical land disparities, with white South Africans holding a majority of agricultural land. Mixed local reactions include skepticism about emigration among Afrikaners, who value their cultural identity. While some appreciate Trump’s asylum offer, many reject the notion of becoming refugees, emphasizing their commitment to South Africa.
Trump’s Controversial Decree on South African Aid
On Friday, former President Trump enacted a decree aimed at decreasing American financial assistance to South Africa. This decision was influenced by a recent expropriation law signed by President Cyril Ramaphosa, which seeks to rectify land inequalities rooted in the nation’s history of white supremacy.
The decree also proposes the resettlement of ‘Afrikaners from South Africa who are victims of unfair racial discrimination’ as refugees in the United States. Afrikaners, primarily white descendants of early Dutch and French settlers, currently possess a significant portion of the country’s agricultural land.
Local Perspectives on Emigration
Local residents have mixed feelings about the decree. Neville van der Merwe, a 78-year-old retiree from Bothasig, near Cape Town, expressed skepticism: ‘If you have no problems here, why would you want to leave? There has not been any serious grabbing of our land, and life continues as normal.’
The law aims to tackle the stark racial disparities in land ownership, with the white minority holding three-quarters of private land. It facilitates easier government expropriation of land for public interest. Ramaphosa has defended this initiative as necessary for addressing historical injustices.
According to the statistics agency, white individuals constitute only 7.2% of South Africa’s 63 million population, and the exact number of Afrikaners remains unspecified. Historically, British authorities granted most farmland to whites, and during the apartheid era, the National Party confiscated 85% of the land, displacing millions of black South Africans.
Ramaphosa’s African National Congress (ANC), the leading party in the ruling coalition, contends that Trump is propagating misleading information pushed by AfriForum, an Afrikaner-led group. Despite having previously lobbied for their cause, AfriForum has announced it will not pursue the proposal for resettlement.
‘Emigration presents a chance for Afrikaners, but it comes at the cost of potentially sacrificing their cultural identity,’ noted Kallie Kriel, CEO of AfriForum, emphasizing that the trade-off is too significant.
In a separate statement, the Solidarity Movement—encompassing AfriForum and the Solidarity union, which claims to represent around 600,000 Afrikaner families—expressed a strong commitment to South Africa. ‘While we may disagree with the ANC, our love for our country remains. Some individuals may choose to emigrate, but repatriating Afrikaners as refugees is not a viable solution for us.’
Representatives from Orania, an Afrikaner-only community, also voiced their opposition to Trump’s proposal. ‘Afrikaners do not wish to become refugees. We cherish our homeland and feel deeply connected to it,’ stated a representative from Orania.
It’s important to note that since the end of apartheid, South Africa’s land policies have not included the forced acquisition of land owned by whites. Nevertheless, some have expressed appreciation for Trump’s offer. Carpenter Werner van Niekerk remarked, ‘I think it’s a kind gesture from Donald Trump to offer us asylum, though I haven’t decided if I would migrate to America.’
Others found humor in the situation, as author Pieter du Toit humorously questioned the requirements for joining the Afrikaner community in America, whether membership in AfriForum was necessary, and if there would be pickup trucks available in the U.S., referencing South African-born billionaire Elon Musk’s involvement with Trump.