US Bars Some South Africans Over Racial Bias Claims

The United States has announced visa restrictions on some South Africans, as Donald Trump’s administration continues to argue that South Africa’s government discriminates against white Afrikaners, a minority group.

The announcement did not identify the individuals who would be affected. Trump has used his second term to make repeated claims, which the article describes as false, that a “white genocide” is under way in South Africa, and to criticise the country’s affirmative action policies.

What The Visa Restrictions Would Target

In a post on X, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the visa curbs would apply to “foreign nationals” who enact or enable policies that promote discrimination based on race, incite violence, or facilitate land confiscation without compensation in South Africa.

Rubio also said South Africa’s government was failing to address rural crime and what he described as violent and dehumanising rhetoric, while pursuing race-based policies affecting Afrikaners and other minority populations.

Escalation Seen By Washington

The announcement comes after a series of measures taken by the United States since late last year. The US cut aid to South Africa, barred the country from this year’s G20 summit in Miami, and created a refugee programme for Afrikaners and other South African racial minorities.

Rubio’s remarks also pointed to South Africa’s domestic policies, including its approach to land reform. The Trump administration has simultaneously dismantled parts of refugee and asylum programmes for people fleeing war and persecution.

Leo Brent Bozell III, the US ambassador to South Africa, said on X that the visa restrictions were only the first step in a wider set of escalation measures.

South Africa Says Policies Are Misrepresented

South Africa’s foreign ministry rejected the US characterisation. In a statement first published in Afrikaans, spokesperson Chrispin Phiri said the announcement reflected “mischaracterisation” by fringe groups that he said wrongly portray themselves as representing minorities, including Afrikaners.

Phiri added that South Africa has the sovereign right to set laws addressing the country’s concern about centuries of racial injustice, and said the country respects that the US may hold different views about specific measures and how they are carried out.

Land Reform, Inequality And Discrimination Claims

Afrikaners are descendants of Dutch and French settlers and ruled South Africa during apartheid. Under the apartheid regime, the black majority was discriminated against and repressed, while white people were kept safe and wealthy.

Since Nelson Mandela became South Africa’s first black president in 1994, governments have sought to tackle racial inequality through programmes such as black economic empowerment and land purchases for redistribution. A 2023 article in the Review of Political Economy estimated that white South Africans typically have about 20 times the wealth of Black people.

Despite these measures, some white South Africans say they face discrimination. The US announcement singled out land expropriation without compensation. South Africa introduced legislation last year allowing the government to seize land without paying in specific situations, including if land is abandoned or held only for speculation. The article says there has been no large-scale expropriation.

Some of the allegations of bias cited by US conservatives have also been linked to Julius Malema, leader of the far-left opposition party. The article says Malema repeatedly uses an apartheid-era chant, “Kill the Boer”, with “Boer” referring to Afrikaners. It also says a video featuring the chant was shown by Trump when he met South Africa’s president, Cyril Ramaphosa, at the Oval Office last year.

The ruling African National Congress has disavowed the chant. South African courts, the article says, have ruled it is not intended literally and therefore does not constitute hate speech.

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18 September 2026