Rows of white crosses planted on the grass of the National Mall in Washington DC have been staged by an Afrikaner lobby group to represent people they say are victims of a “white genocide” in South Africa.
The display, which used thousands of crosses, aimed to draw public and political attention to that claim, the BBC reported.
Back in Pretoria’s diplomatic ranks, South Africa’s new ambassador to the United States, Roelf Meyer, has rejected the idea of an organised mass campaign against the white Afrikaner minority. Meyer told reporters that the notion of a mass attack on the white Afrikaner minority in South Africa does not exist, according to the BBC.
At the same time, the US administration has signalled a policy response in Washington. A notice sent to Congress, the BBC said, indicates the Trump administration is planning to admit up to 17,500 additional white Afrikaners as refugees over the next 12 months.
The BBC’s North America correspondent Ione Wells set out how the United States, through public demonstrations and immigration decisions, has figured in the debate over whether crimes in South Africa amount to an organised effort to target white Afrikaners. The BBC piece looks at those connections and how they have elevated the campaign in Washington.
The sequence of events in Washington puts the claims, the diplomatic denial from Pretoria and a US immigration policy proposal into the same public arena. The Afrikaner group’s public memorial display sought to personalise the allegation of a campaign against whites, while the South African envoy rejected that characterisation in official remarks. Separately, the US notice to Congress signals a plan to expand refugee admissions for Afrikaners, the BBC reported.
Each element of the story is tied to public statements or actions reported by the BBC. Debate continues over the interpretation of events in South Africa, while Washington’s choices on refugee admissions will be watched for their diplomatic and humanitarian implications.
Leave a comment