Donald Trump is sticking his nose in South Africa’s business.
Trump has ordered Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to study the land redistribution efforts in South Africa. Trump’s interest was piqued by a Fox News segment during which host Tucker Carlson criticized South Africa for seizing land from white farmers so it can be given to black residents.
I have asked Secretary of State @SecPompeo to closely study the South Africa land and farm seizures and expropriations and the large scale killing of farmers. “South African Government is now seizing land from white farmers.” @TuckerCarlson
@FoxNews— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 23, 2018
“South African president Cyril Ramaphosa has just begun the process of seizing land from his own citizens, without compensation, because they're the wrong skin color. That is literally the definition of racism,” Carlson said during his show.
As CNBC noted, this is the first time Trump has used the word “Africa” in a tweet since he was elected.
A spokeswoman from President Ramaphosa’s office called Trump’s tweet “misinformed,” according to Reuters.
Additionally, the South African government tweeted its condemnation of Trump’s statement:
South Africa totally rejects this narrow perception which only seeks to divide our nation and reminds us of our colonial past. #landexpropriation
@realDonaldTrump
@PresidencyZA— South African Government (@GovernmentZA) August 23, 2018
South African foreign affairs minister Lindiwe Sisulu said Trump’s statement “is based on false information.”
The South African land redistribution has been a controversial topic since it was announced in early August. Ramaphosa announced the government would amend the constitution to allow land to be seized from white farmers without compensation. So far, no land has been seized since the announcement. Prior to this initiative, white landowners were able to sell their land back to the government so it could be redistributed to black South Africans.
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