Ramaphosa slams White South African asylum seekers as ‘cowards’
According to Ramaphosa, the asylum seekers were uncomfortable with ongoing efforts to address apartheid-era injustices in South Africa, calling their departure a "sad moment for them".
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has castigated the 59 white South Africans who were granted refugee status by the United States, labelling them ‘cowards’ who will soon regret their decision.
The US received the group of Afrikaners on Monday after President Donald Trump offered them asylum, citing claims of racial discrimination.
More To Read
- Frosty relations begin to melt as Ramaphosa, Trump hold first call
- South African President Ramaphosa wants to do a deal with Trump to resolve dispute
- Trump halts aid to South Africa over land reforms, Israel ICJ case, and Iran ties
- Kagame fires warning shot at Ramaphosa as tensions over DR Congo conflict escalate
- South Africa’s unity govt could see a continuation of the ANC’s political dominance – and hurt the DA
- South Africa is changing its retirement rules to help boost country savings: how it will work
Both Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who was born in South Africa, have claimed that there is an ongoing “genocide” of white farmers in the nation. The US has also criticised South Africa’s land reform policies, accusing the government of attempting to take land from white farmers without compensation.
The group of Afrikaners, descendants of mostly Dutch settlers, were received at the Dulles Airport near Washington D.C. by high-ranking US officials, including Deputy Secretary of State Chris Landau, who welcomed them to “the land of the free.”
According to Ramaphosa, the asylum seekers were uncomfortable with ongoing efforts to address apartheid-era injustices in South Africa, calling their departure a "sad moment for them".
"As South Africans, we are resilient. We don't run away from our problems. We must stay here and solve our problems. When you run away, you are a coward, and that's a real cowardly act," said Ramaphosa at an agricultural exhibition in the Free State province on Monday.
"If you look at all national groups in our country, black and white, they've stayed in this country because it's our country, and we must not run away from our problems. We must stay here and solve our problems. I can bet you that they will be back soon because there is no country like South Africa.”
Earlier in the day, Ramaphosa, speaking at the Africa CEO forum in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, revealed that he had refuted the US’s allegations during a phone call with Trump.
"We're the only country on the continent where the colonists came to stay, and we have never driven them out of our country," he said, adding that he will soon meet Trump and discuss the matter in person.
Trump has warned he may skip the upcoming G20 summit in South Africa unless the issues are resolved to his satisfaction.
Despite the end of apartheid over three decades ago, land ownership in South Africa remains highly unequal, with a small number of white farmers still owning most of the country’s fertile land.
This has sparked growing frustration among black South Africans over stalled reforms, prompting Ramaphosa to enact a new law in January that allows the state to acquire private land without any compensation, under specific conditions.
Top Stories Today
