A coalition of prominent Afrikaans-speaking South Africans has openly rejected claims that Afrikaners are being racially persecuted, challenging a narrative recently amplified in international political circles.
The group, comprising academics, journalists, lawyers, business leaders, clergy and cultural commentators, criticised efforts to present Afrikaners as victims, particularly in the context of the Trump administration’s proposal to prioritise white South Africans for refugee status while reducing overall refugee admissions, as per Smile FM. They argue that this framing is misleading, divisive, and dangerously aligned with far-right ideologies abroad.
‘It distorts the realities of South Africa, weaponises our history, and reduces a complex social context and necessary levelling of playing fields into a simplistic symbol of white decline,’ the letter states. ‘South Africa faces serious challenges – crime, inequality, and the enduring legacy of apartheid – but these issues affect South Africans of all races. To cherry-pick white suffering and elevate it above others is dishonest and harmful. It feeds extremist ideologies that perpetuate division and have inspired real-world violence, including mass shootings.’
The African National Congress (ANC) praised the stance, calling it courageous and essential for nation-building. ANC National Spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu urged all South Africans, including those historically advantaged under apartheid, to work together to complete the ‘unfinished business of liberation’ and ensure equality, social justice, and full transformation.
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Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya reinforced the point on X, stating, ‘Our compatriots have spoken. The rest is just noise.’
The letter was co-signed by a wide-ranging group of leaders, including journalists Anneliese Burgess and Max du Preez, academics Prof Pierre de Vos and Prof Martin Oosthuizen; business figures Chris Otto and Andrew le Roux; clergy Rev Andries Cilliers and Rev Dr Petrus Strijdom; and legal experts Louise du Plessis and Leane Spangenberg, among others.
By rejecting the victim narrative, the signatories emphasise the importance of honest engagement with South Africa’s complex social realities. They highlight that framing Afrikaners as a group under siege undermines the broader goals of unity, reconciliation, and shared commitment to redressing the inequalities created by centuries of oppression.
The ANC underlined that the collective voice of these Afrikaans-speaking South Africans strengthens the call for honesty about the past and a collaborative approach to building a non-racial, non-sexist, democratic, and prosperous South Africa.
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