Roelf Meyer, South Africa’s new ambassador to Washington, has publicly dismissed claims that a white genocide is taking place in his homeland, challenging former President Donald Trump’s assertion that white farmers are being targeted.
Meyer, a born Afrikaner who helped negotiate the end of apartheid, said the notion of a mass attack on the white minority does not exist and that he could speak authoritatively because he himself belongs to that community. He added that crime data in South Africa show the majority of violent incidents involve black victims, not white farmers, and that the “farm attacks” are often motivated by robbery rather than racial persecution.
The former diplomat told the BBC that the U.S. executive order that opened a refugee pathway for Afrikaners was unjustified and should be revoked. He reminded the United States that South Africa has never prevented its citizens from leaving and that its laws on land expropriation are awaiting a court ruling.
Despite the ambassador’s claims, the Trump administration has admitted nearly 13,000 Afrikaner refugees, most of whom are South African, and has warned that further punitive steps may be taken if the South African government does not address the alleged persecution. Critics argue that the programme unfairly targets a specific ethnic group and draws attention away from broader issues of poverty and gender-based violence.
Meyer urged the United States to support South Africa’s fight against crime by providing equipment to improve response times. He also told the media that any genuine concern about "farm attacks" should be matched with internal efforts to reduce crime in all communities, not just by raising external protests.
