Trump administration welcomes the first group of white South African refugees

Washington, (EFE) – The United States government welcomed last week the first group of 49 Afrikaners (white South Africans descended from Dutch settlers) who arrived in the country as refugees, fleeing what President Donald Trump calls “genocide.”

Undersecretary of State Christopher Landau welcomed the South African citizens at Dulles International Airport, outside Washington.

“When you have quality seeds, you can plant them in foreign soil and they will flourish. We are excited to welcome them to our country, where we believe they will flourish,” Landau told the new arrivals, who plan to move to other parts of the country.

In a statement, State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce called the operation a “great achievement,” in line with Trump’s call to “prioritize the resettlement” of a “vulnerable group facing unjust racial discrimination in South Africa.”

This was the first group to arrive in the US from the African nation after Trump opened the door to the resettlement of “Afrikaner refugees” in February with an executive order that blocked aid to South Africa under accusations of “confiscating” land from the white minority, a claim denied by the South African government.

Hours before the arrival of the asylum seekers, the US president justified giving refuge to this group of people because, he claimed, they are suffering “genocide” in South Africa.

“Whether they are white or black is not important to me, but they are white farmers who are being brutally murdered and their land is being confiscated in South Africa,” he declared at a press conference at the White House.

Trump said he could meet with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa next week at the White House and insisted that the United States would not participate in the G20 in South Africa as long as the alleged discrimination against Afrikaners continues.

Ramaphosa stated this Monday that the Afrikaners who left for the United States do not qualify as refugees because they do not suffer any form of persecution.

The South Africans arrived in the US thanks to a program that provides asylum to people fleeing conflict, natural disasters, and humanitarian crises. This program has been suspended since Trump came to power in January, promoting a harsh immigration policy and “closed borders.”

The waiting period for refugees to be processed and receive travel authorization to the US can usually take years. This status provides a direct path to US citizenship.

This same Monday, Washington ended an immigration protection that protects thousands of Afghan citizens from deportation and allows them to work legally in the US, under the justification that the situation in Afghanistan has “improved” and migrants who fled after the departure of US troops can return to their country.

Several protesters gathered at Dulles Airport to protest the arrival of white South Africans as refugees, an expedited process that denotes “special treatment,” according to local media reports.