In his defiant style of leadership, US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order freezing financial aid to South Africa, just a few days after threatening to do so.
According to Trump, he was bringing in the order because of South Africa’s new land law, which he believes violates people’s rights as well as the international court of justice genocide case the African country brought against Israel.
The order said the US “cannot support the government of South Africa’s commission of rights violations in its country”, and as long as it “continues these unjust and immoral practices” then the US will not provide aid or assistance.
According to the White House, Washington will also formulate a plan to resettle South African farmers and their families as refugees.
It further assured that US officials will take steps to prioritise humanitarian relief, including admission and resettlement through the United States Refugee Admissions Program for Afrikaners in South Africa, who are mostly white descendants of early Dutch and French settlers.
The order said: “In addition, South Africa has taken aggressive positions towards the United States and its allies, including accusing Israel, not Hamas, of genocide in the ICJ, and reinvigorating its relations with Iran to develop commercial, military, and nuclear arrangements.”
Theis development escalates a dispute between the two countries nearly a week after Trump threatened to cut funding without citing evidence, that “South Africa is confiscating land” and “certain classes of people” were being treated “very badly”.
Recall, Trump’s close adviser Elon Musk, who was born in South Africa, also joined in the criticism asking on X why Ramaphosa had “openly racist ownership laws”.
President Cyril Ramaphosa who is yet to comment on the matter had previously defended South Africa’s land policy after Trump’s threat on Sunday.
He said the government had not confiscated any land and the policy was aimed at ensuring equitable public access to land.
President Ramaphosa’s law was signed last month, and allows land seizures without compensation in certain circumstances.
