South African government criticises Trump's refugee policy prioritising white Afrikaner minority
Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau greeted Afrikaner refugees at Dulles International Airport, Washington in May 2025. (AP: Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
In short:
US President Donald Trump has claimed there is a "genocide" against Afrikaners in South Africa and has prioritised accepting them as refugees.
South Africa's government has criticised the policy saying it "rests on a premise that is factually inaccurate".
What's next?
The issue has caused diplomatic relations between South Africa and the US to hit an all-time low, with Mr Trump suspending all financial aid to South Africa.
South Africa's government has criticised the US refugee policy shift that gives priority to Afrikaners, the country's white minority group of Dutch descent.
The Trump administration announced on Thursday that a ceiling of 7,500 refugees would be admitted to the United States, a sharp decrease from the previous 125,000 spots, and said Afrikaners would be given preference over other groups.
US President Donald Trump has claimed that there is a "genocide" against Afrikaners in South Africa.
In February, white South Africans showed support for US President Donald Trump at a demonstration in Pretoria. (AFP: Marco Longari)
Mr Trump says they are facing persecution and discrimination because of the country's redress policies.
The South African government's international relations department said that the latest move was concerning as it "still appears to rest on a premise that is factually inaccurate".
"The claim of a 'white genocide' in South Africa is widely discredited and unsupported by reliable evidence,"South African ministerial spokesman Chrispin Phiri said.
It is one of the contentious issues that has seen diplomatic relations between South Africa and the US hit an all-time low, with Mr Trump suspending all financial aid to South Africa and setting one of the highest tariffs for the country's exports to the US.
Afrikaners reject Trump's offer
Mr Trump's asylum offer for Afrikaners has been largely rejected even by many in the Afrikaner community.
This week, a group of prominent Afrikaners, including politicians, activists, writers and businesspeople, penned an open letter rejecting the notion that Afrikaners needed to emigrate from South Africa.
"The idea that white South Africans deserve special asylum status because of their race undermines the very principles of the refugee program. Vulnerability — not race — should guide humanitarian policy," they wrote in the widely publicised letter.
A group of 59 white South Africans were granted asylum to the US in May this year. (AP: Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
Mr Phiri said that a program designed to facilitate the immigration and resettlement of Afrikaners as refugees was deeply flawed and disregarded the country's constitutional processes.
"The limited uptake of this offer by South Africans is a telling indicator of this reality," Mr Phiri said.
Afrikaners criticise South African government
Some Afrikaner groups continue to be critical of the South African government's handling of crime and redress policies, even though they reject the "white genocide" claim.
An Afrikaner lobby group, AfriForum, said on Thursday that it did not call the murder of white farmers genocide, but raised concerns about white people's safety in South Africa.
"This does not mean AfriForum rejects or scoffs at Mr Trump's refugee status offer — there will be Afrikaners who apply, and they should have the option, especially those who have been victims of horrific farm attacks or the South African government's many racially discriminatory policies," AfriForum spokesman Ernst van Zyl said.
While it is unclear how many white South Africans have applied for refugee status in the US, a group of 59 white South Africans were granted asylum and were received with much fanfare in May.
AP