President Trump on Friday directed government officials to prioritize resettlement of South Africans through the US refugee program.
In his executive order, Trump accused the South African government of discriminating against Africans, a South African ethnic group. It consists primarily of descendants of European settlers from the Netherlands who first arrived in the 1600s.
Until the 1990s, South Africans of European descent ruled South Africa, forcing a brutal system of apartheid on the country’s black majority.
But Trump has argued in his order that white South Africans are now targets of government suppression by the country, citing the law by US conservatives like Trump’s advisors and billionaires. . Elon Musk They say they allow racially motivated seizures on land owned by South Africans. Musk was born in South Africa.
The South African government strongly denies land confiscation and racially motivated discrimination, and the law under scrutiny means that the land is not being used or serving the public interest. It states.
In his order, Trump told Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Homeland Security Christa Noem that he said: “Entry and resettlement through the US Refugee Entrance Program for Africans in South Africa, who are victims of unfair racism. He instructed humanitarian relief to prioritize, including
With the refugee arrivals being stopped by Trump, it is unclear when and how the plan will be enacted.
in Presidential order he signed On January 20, the president argued that refugees are burdened with receiving their communities, saying they would only reopen the refugee program if he concluded that doing so would serve the interests of the United States.
But Trump’s order allows authorities to provide case-by-case waiver for freezing refugee arrivals.
The US Refugee Program is designed to provide safe shelter for people abroad who have fled persecution based on race, religion, political views, or other factors. Refugees are usually referred to the United States by UN officials and spend months or years in third countries where they are interviewed before entering the United States, as well as security and medical checks.
Historically, most of the people participating in the United States through refugee programs have been welcomed by Africa and Asian countries.
The President’s order also cuts out assistance or support to South Africa, as long as it implements the new Land Reform Act. The move raises further questions about the United States.” AIDS response program, Pepferproviding HIV treatment to millions of adults and hundreds of thousands of children, many of which are children from African countries.
The Trump administration ordered a freeze on all foreign aid, including international. Medicine And humanitarian efforts. Last weekend, the State Department issued exemptions to allow PEPFAR and several other programs to resume, but there was still a delay in distribution of aid.
Beyond the accusations of racism, Trump also claims that South Africa has “taken an offensive stance towards the United States and its allies,” and that Israel is engaged in a massacre against Palestinians. He quoted cases filed before the court.
Margaret Brennan contributed to this report.
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