South Africa denounces Trump’s G20 boycott, calls genocide claims false
Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana said the accusations, fuelled by US President Donald Trump's announcement that no American officials would attend the summit, are misinformed.
South Africa's Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana has dismissed reports of a genocide against white Afrikaners, stating that the allegations are being used to sow division and discredit the country as it prepares to host the 2025 G20 summit in Johannesburg.
The summit, set for November 22-23, will bring together delegates from the world's major economies to discuss ways to strengthen disaster preparedness, support debt relief for low-income nations and promote inclusive growth through the sustainable use of critical minerals.
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Speaking when he issued a budget statement on Wednesday, Godongwana said the accusations, fuelled by US President Donald Trump's announcement that no American officials would attend the summit, are misinformed.
"We convene at a time when South Africa, like many nations around the world, is grappling with intensifying global competition and mounting economic and political divisions," the statement, seen by The Eastleigh Voice, reads.
"It is against this fractured landscape that South Africa has been falsely accused of genocide against its white community and threatened with punitive sanctions based on these falsehoods."
Godongwana similarly commended members of the Afrikaner community who spoke out against the claims, noting that their response highlights the importance of building unity based on truth.
"The members of the Afrikaner community who recently came out publicly, refusing to be used as pawns or portrayed as victims, provide us a timely reminder of our responsibility to forge collective prosperity grounded in truth, justice and mutual respect."
His comments follow last week's announcement by Trump that the US would boycott the summit, citing allegations of a genocide against white Afrikaners.
"It is a total disgrace that the G20 will be held in South Africa. Afrikaners (People who are descended from Dutch settlers, and also French and German immigrants) are being killed and slaughtered, and their land and farms are being illegally confiscated," Trump said.
"No US government official will attend as long as these human rights abuses continue. I look forward to hosting the 2026 G20 in Miami, Florida!"
Trump has long maintained that white Afrikaners in South Africa are facing persecution.
In May, he granted refugee status to some of these farmers while restricting arrivals from other nations. In the same month, he presented South African President Cyril Ramaphosa with videos and images at the White House, which he claimed showed evidence of the persecution.
Addressing journalists on Wednesday, Ramaphosa maintained that Washington's absence from the summit was "their loss" while stressing that it would proceed as planned.
He added that the US was "forgoing the important role it should be playing as the world's largest economy," according to the BBC.
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