South Africa condemns 'misinformation' after Trump freezes aid

by Gersende RAMBOURG

South Africa on Saturday condemned a "campaign of misinformation" after US President Donald Trump issued an order freezing aid to the country over a law he alleges allows land to be seized from white farmers

"We are concerned by what seems to be a campaign of misinformation and propaganda aimed at misrepresenting our great nation," the government said.

Land ownership is a contentious issue in South Africa, with most farmland still owned by white people three decades after the end of apartheid. It is a legacy of a policy of expropriating land from the black population that endured during apartheid and the colonial period before it.

"It is disappointing to observe that such narratives seem to have found favour among decision-makers in the United States of America," Pretoria said.

Trump claimed on Friday the law would "enable the government of South Africa to seize ethnic minority Afrikaners' agricultural property without compensation".

The allegation came in an executive order, which also noted foreign policy clashes between the United States and South Africa over the war in Gaza, particularly Pretoria's genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice.

South Africa's foreign ministry said it "has taken note" of Trump's executive order but added: "It is of great concern that the foundational premise of this order lacks factual accuracy and fails to recognize South Africa's profound and painful history of colonialism and apartheid."

"It is ironic that the executive order makes provision for refugee status in the US for a group in South Africa that remains amongst the most economically privileged, while vulnerable people in the US from other parts of the world are being deported and denied asylum despite real hardship."

The South African president's office has denied any intention of “seizing lands".

Trump's executive order pledges to assist the “ethnic minority Afrikaners" -- descendants of the first European settlers, including offering refugee status to what it said were "racially disfavoured landowners".

State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said Saturday that "persecuted South African farmers and other innocent victims being targeted solely based on their race who choose to resettle in America will be welcome."

"The United States will also defend the rights and interests of those remaining descendants of settlers threatened with expropriation without compensation and other intolerable abuses," she said on X.

- 'Afrikaners or Amerikaners?' -

President Cyril Ramaphosa said in a national address on Thursday his country would not be "intimidated" by the United States.

"We are witnessing the rise of nationalism, protectionism, the pursuit of narrow interests and the decline of common cause," Ramaphosa said.

Trump made a blanket claim that the South African land law would allow the government to seize Afrikaners' property "without compensation".

The law, which came into force in January, clarifies the legal framework for expropriations. Most legal experts stress it does not add new content.

It allows the government, as a matter of public interest, to decide on expropriations without compensation -- but only in certain exceptional circumstances where it would be "just and equitable".

For several days, South Africans of all racial origins have taken to social media to mock the US stance.

"Should we now call them Amerikaners?" quipped one person on Saturday.

"Should we expect wine estates or safari reserves to be evacuated?" joked another. Most estates and private reserves in the country belong to white families.

On Saturday, Afriforum, a small organisation dedicated to "protecting and promoting the Afrikaner identity", expressed its "great appreciation" to Trump, while stressing that white South Africans' place was in their home country.

White South Africans make up around seven percent of the population, according to date from 2022. Afrikaners make up a proportion of that group.

Trump's ally Elon Musk, who was born in South Africa under apartheid, has accused Ramaphosa's government of having "openly racist ownership laws".

ger/gil/jhb

© Agence France-Presse