Johannesburg (February 10, 2025): U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent offer to grant asylum to white South Africans, citing “racial discrimination” under the country’s land reform policies, has been met with widespread rejection from the very community it aimed to support.
Despite Trump’s executive order allowing for the resettlement of Afrikaners in the U.S., prominent white South African groups have dismissed the offer, emphasizing their commitment to remaining in South Africa and addressing perceived injustices locally.
Afriforum, a right-wing Afrikaner lobby group, declined the offer, with CEO Kallie Kriel stating that leaving the country would mean sacrificing their cultural identity. Similarly, the Solidarity Movement, representing around 600,000 Afrikaner families, affirmed their allegiance to South Africa, rejecting the notion of repatriation as refugees.
Even Orania, a whites-only Afrikaner settlement, distanced itself from Trump’s proposal, stating: “Afrikaners do not want to be refugees. We love and are committed to our homeland.”
Trump’s executive order follows the signing of a land reform law by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, which aims to address historical land ownership disparities. The law allows for land expropriation in limited cases without compensation. Ramaphosa has defended the policy, dismissing allegations of forced land seizures as misinformation spread by Afriforum.
While some individuals have expressed appreciation for Trump’s gesture, many white South Africans see no urgent reason to leave. “There hasn’t been any real land grabbing. People are carrying on like normal,” said pensioner Neville van der Merwe.
Others took a more humorous approach, with journalist Pieter du Toit jokingly questioning whether Afrikaner identity tests or AfriForum membership would be required to qualify for Trump’s offer.
Source: Reuters
