The South African government lashed out at President Donald Trump on Thursday after he tweeted that his administration would be looking into farm seizures and the “large scale killing of farmers” in South Africa.
The government said Trump’s tweet was based on “false information” and reflected a “narrow perception which only seeks to divide our nation and reminds us of our colonial past.” It said it was meeting with the U.S. Embassy on Thursday as it seeks to clarify Trump’s remarks.
Trump’s tweet followed a segment on Fox News on Wednesday in which host Tucker Carlson claimed Ramaphosa had already started “seizing land from his own citizens without compensation because they are the wrong skin color,” calling the alleged seizures “immoral.”
I have asked Secretary of State @SecPompeo to closely study the South Africa land and farm seizures and expropriations and the large scale killing of farmers. “South African Government is now seizing land from white farmers.” @TuckerCarlson @FoxNews
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 23, 2018
Though South Africa’s constitution has not yet been amended and the government has not seized any major agricultural land, the prospect has sent panic through some white farming communities who worry the policy will strip them of their land, cause land prices to plummet or make them the target of potentially violent land seizures.
For years, white South Africans have claimed white farmers are the target of violent, racially motivated farm attacks.
Some researchers say the attacks reflect the country’s generally high crime rate. In 2016-17, there were 74 murders that occurred during farm attacks, according to Africa Check, compared to 19,000 murders across the country in the same period.- READ MORE
[divider][/divider]Back in July, former President Barack Obama made a speech in South Africa that garnered much attention, although not for the reason it should have.
During his speech at the Nelson Mandela Lecture in a packed Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg, Obama went out of his way to praise South Africa’s new president, Cyril Ramaphosa for “inspiring great hope in this country.”
If you weren’t studying the situation in South Africa, you might be forgiven for thinking this was perfectly OK. After all, Ramaphosa replaced Jacob Zuma, one of the world’s most shameless kleptocrats. In most cases, that certainly would be a cause for celebration.
And, indeed, South African media seemed to pick up on the support for the new Ramaphosa administration: “The Nelson Mandela Lecture had plenty of star power on Tuesday afternoon,” The South African reported. “While former US President Barack Obama was undoubtedly the star of the show, the reaction Cyril Ramaphosa received was rather incredible.”
See, Ramaphosa realizes that his country is in dire trouble. Zuma has essentially drained gigantic amounts of money from state-owned industries. Meanwhile, his party — the African National Congress, the party of Nelson Mandela which has ruled South Africa since the end of apartheid and has experienced frighteningly diminishing returns since their first standard-bearer — wants a speedier way to equality.
That way is called EWC — Expropriation Without Compensation. It is a pleasant euphemism for taking land from white farmers without compensating them and giving it to black citizens in order to make things in the country more equal, something South Africa is considering amending the constitution to make legal. – READ MORE
[contentcards url=”https://www.westernjournal.com/south-africa-blasts-trump-racially-divisive-tweet/” target=”_blank”]