Cape Town, South Africa (AP) – Trump’s administration brought a small number of white South Africans to the United States as refugees on Monday. It says that it is the beginning of greater efforts to move members of the Afrikaner minority group, who are persecuted by their government-led government because of their race.
The 59 South Africans were quickly followed by the United States after President Donald Trump announced the movement program in February. He said on Monday that white African farmers were facing a “genocide” in their homeland, an accusation very denied by the South African government.
The Trump administration occupies an anti -migrant position by stopping refugee programs and stopping arrival from other parts of the world, including Iraq, Afghanistan and most Subsahara Africa countries.
Refugee groups have asked why white South Africans are prioritized.
South Africa says there is no pursuit
The South African government said the US allegations that Africanists were persecuted were “completely false”, the result of misinformation and an inaccurate view of its country. He cites the fact that Africanists are among the most rich and successful people in the country and said they are among the “most economically privileged”.
Africani are descendants of the main Dutch and French colonial settlers who first came to South Africa in the 17th century. There are about 2.7 million African people in the South Africa population of 62 million, which is over 80% black. Many in South Africa are puzzled by the allegations that they have been persecuted.
Africani are the largest white group in South Africa and part of the country’s daily multiral life. Many are successful business leaders and some serve in the government. Their language, Africa, is spoken broadly by non-africa-and is recognized as official language, and churches and other institutions reflecting the culture of Africani have fame in almost every city and city.
The Africa were leaders of the apartheid system of the Governance of the White Minority, which ended in 1994.
So, what pursuit do the United States say?
Agricultural attacks
Trump and his South Africa Born Elon Musk have accused the South Africa government of having racist anti-white laws and policies, but allegations of pursuit and genocide center for a relatively small number of agricultural attacks and robberies on white people in rural communities.
The United States claims that these attacks are racially motivated, and the South Africa government “nourishes” them, allowing anti-white rhetoric in politics and does not do enough to protect African communities. The government has condemned the farm attacks, but says their cause is deliberately wrongly characterized.
The violent attacks on farm owners in South Africa have been a problem for years, but they are a small percentage of extremely high levels of crime in the country that affect all races. The government says there is no targeting on white people, and agricultural attacks are part of its crime struggles.
Groups representing farmers have registered about 50 or less farm killings annually in the last two years in South Africa. These figures have been identified for a total of over 20,000 murders a year, affecting all races.
“There are no data that supports that there is a persecution of white South Africans or more special white African,” said South African Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola. “White farmers are affected by crime like all other South Africans.”
However, many rural white communities have long expressed fear of the threat of violence and have been attacking them in domestic invasions and robberies are particularly brutal.
“So, we essentially expanded the citizenship of these people … to escape from this violence and to come here,” Trump said.
Affirmative actions and “reverse racism”
The Trump Administration also criticizes South Africa’s affirmative actions as a racist against white and falsely claims that white South Africans have taken their land from the government under a new alienation law that promotes “confiscation of racial discriminatory property.”
No land is alienated, but Africanists, which make up many rural communities, have reflected fears that their land can be directed.
South Africa has laws designed to develop the employment opportunities for blacks, and many white South Africans and white -led political parties have also criticized them and called them racist and counterproductive.
Some groups of Africaer say that employment, land and other laws are intended to specifically limit their capabilities in South Africa in a kind of reverse racism as a punishment for the role of Africani in Apartheid. The government rejects this and says the laws are intended to provide black access to jobs and land to which they have been denied under Apartheid.
Not the only racial minority in South Africa
Africanists are not the only racial minority in South Africa, not the only white minority. South Africa also has nearly 2 million white people with British or other heritage.
The Trump Administration Program initially only referred to African. But in new directions published by the US Embassy on Monday, the candidates for refugee status must be “ethnic affiliation or a member of a racial minority in South Africa.” Other racial minorities include a group of about 5 million with beer -based heritage, as well as people with Indian and other South Asian heritage.
It is unclear how many South Africans have applied or received refugee status, but spokesman for the US State Department Tammy Bruce said the administration would welcome more Africa as refugees in the coming months.
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Associated Press Writers Michel Gumede and Mogomoti Magome in Johannesburg have contributed to this report.
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