Particle.news
Download on the App Store
6 ARTICLES
·
3d ago

Tensions Rise as U.S. and South Africa Prepare for Key Talks on Refugee Policy and Aid Freeze

President Ramaphosa seeks to counter U.S. claims of genocide and land seizures ahead of White House meeting with President Trump.

Visitors at the Nampo agricultural fair, one of the largest in the southern hemisphere, ride past the wall of remembrance, a tribute to farmers killed since 1961, near Bothaville, South Africa, May 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)
Farmers visit the Nampo agricultural fair, one of the largest in the southern hemisphere, near Bothaville, South Africa, May 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)
Visitors at the Nampo agricultural fair, one of the largest in the southern hemisphere, check names on the wall of remembrance, a tribute to farmers killed since 1961, near Bothaville, South Africa, May 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)
The first group of Afrikaners from South Africa arrive at Washington Dulles International Airport in Dulles, Virginia, on May 12, 2025. (Photo by Saul Loeb/AFP/ Getty Images)

Overview

  • President Trump has accused South Africa of genocide against white farmers and halted U.S. financial aid, including HIV/AIDS program funding, over alleged land seizures.
  • The U.S. has granted refugee status to at least 49 Afrikaner farmers citing racial persecution, with a fast-track program raising concerns about racial bias in asylum policy.
  • South African officials, including Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen, deny claims of genocide and mass land expropriation, citing crime data that affects both Black and white farmers.
  • President Ramaphosa, ahead of his May 21 meeting with Trump, aims to present evidence disputing U.S. allegations while addressing broader concerns about rural crime and land inequality.
  • South Africa's 2017 census shows white farmers, 7% of the population, own 80% of commercial farmland, a legacy of apartheid-era policies fueling ongoing land reform debates.