Trump says he will cut off funding to South Africa over land ‘confiscations’
Cyril Ramaphosa’s government ‘treating certain classes of people very badly’, says Trump, calling for investigation
The US president’s intervention into one of South Africa’s most divisive issues was rebutted by the country’s government and criticised by groups across its political spectrum.
Land ownership in South Africa remains highly unequal, a legacy of white minority rule that governments have struggled to address since the first multi-racial elections in 1994.
Efforts to redress this inequality have drawn criticism from conservatives globally, including the South African-born billionaire and close Trump ally Elon Musk, who on Monday posted “Why do you have openly racist ownership laws?” on his social media platform X, in response to the defence of the country’s policy by South Africa’s president, Cyril Ramaphosa.
Musk, who is heading Trump’s efforts to shrink the federal government, has said he is working to shut down the foreign aid agency USAid. At the weekend, the Trump administration removed two security officials from USAid who had tried to stop representatives from his department of government efficiency from gaining access to the building.
Ramaphosa signed a bill last month allowing the South African government to offer “nil compensation” in certain circumstances for land it expropriates in the public interest. This includes if the land is abandoned or held purely for speculation, if offering no compensation is “just and equitable”.
www.theguardian.com
Cyril Ramaphosa’s government ‘treating certain classes of people very badly’, says Trump, calling for investigation
The US president’s intervention into one of South Africa’s most divisive issues was rebutted by the country’s government and criticised by groups across its political spectrum.
Land ownership in South Africa remains highly unequal, a legacy of white minority rule that governments have struggled to address since the first multi-racial elections in 1994.
Efforts to redress this inequality have drawn criticism from conservatives globally, including the South African-born billionaire and close Trump ally Elon Musk, who on Monday posted “Why do you have openly racist ownership laws?” on his social media platform X, in response to the defence of the country’s policy by South Africa’s president, Cyril Ramaphosa.
Musk, who is heading Trump’s efforts to shrink the federal government, has said he is working to shut down the foreign aid agency USAid. At the weekend, the Trump administration removed two security officials from USAid who had tried to stop representatives from his department of government efficiency from gaining access to the building.
Ramaphosa signed a bill last month allowing the South African government to offer “nil compensation” in certain circumstances for land it expropriates in the public interest. This includes if the land is abandoned or held purely for speculation, if offering no compensation is “just and equitable”.
Trump says he will cut off funding to South Africa over land ‘confiscations’
Cyril Ramaphosa’s government ‘treating certain classes of people very badly’, says Trump, calling for investigation
.
