By 
United State (US) President, Donald Trump, has threatened to cut all future funding to South Africa, accusing the country of land confiscations and mistreating certain groups of people.
His comments followed President Cyril Ramaphosa’s recent signing of a bill that permits land expropriation without compensation under specific circumstances, according to a BBC report.
Land ownership remained a contentious issue in South Africa, where most farmland is still white-owned, despite 30 years having passed since the end of apartheid.
“South Africa is a constitutional democracy rooted in the rule of law, justice, and equality. The government has not confiscated any land,” Ramaphosa stated in response on X (formerly Twitter) on Monday.
Tech billionaire Elon Musk, a South African-born Trump adviser, also waded into the debate.
“Why do you have openly racist ownership laws?” Musk posted on X, addressing Ramaphosa.
Trump later escalated his stance in a post on his platform, Truth Social.
“I will be cutting off all future funding to South Africa until a full investigation of this situation has been completed!” he wrote on Sunday.
Speaking to journalists, Trump claimed that South Africa’s leadership was engaged in “horrible things” beyond just land expropriation.
“We’ll make a determination, and until such time as we find out what South Africa is doing—taking and confiscating land, and perhaps even worse things—we are halting support.”
South Africa’s International Relations Minister, Ronald Lamola, urged Trump’s advisers to deepen their understanding of the country’s policies.
“Such insights will ensure a respectful and informed approach to our democratic commitments,” Lamola posted on X.
Ramaphosa emphasized that the law was not a “confiscation instrument” but a constitutionally guided process to ensure equitable land access.
He also clarified that the only US funding South Africa receives is through the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), which accounts for 17 percent of the country’s HIV/AIDS programme.
The South African government maintains that the new law does not permit arbitrary land seizures, as authorities must first attempt to negotiate with landowners before taking action.
WARNING! All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express permission from ZAMBIA MONITOR.
Comments