South Africa dismisses U.S. human rights report as 'deeply flawed'

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JOHANNESBURG (AP) — The South African government on Wednesday dismissed the U.S. State Department’s latest assessment of the country’s human rights conditions as “inaccurate and deeply flawed.”

The Trump administration this week released human rights reports for countries worldwide, including South Africa, asserting that the state of human rights in South Africa had “significantly worsened” in 2024. It cited the unjust treatment of white Afrikaners after the signing of significant land reforms, which the Trump administration has claimed discriminate against the group that ruled the nation during the apartheid era.

South Africa’s Foreign Ministry expressed “profound disappointment” with the report, saying its reliance on out of context information and discredited accounts was highly concerning.f

The ministry highlighted that the United Nations had hailed the country’s Land Expropriation Act as an important step in resolving racially unequal land ownership, underscoring the integrity of constitutional and human rights-based legislative processes.

It added that the report was ‘ironic’ given the U.S exit from the U.N. Human Rights Council.

“This is particularly striking given the significant and documented concerns about human rights within the United States, including the treatment of refugees and breaches in due process by its own agencies, such as ICE,” the ministry said.

South Africa's government also dismissed as inaccurate the report's claims that it “did not take credible steps to investigate, prosecute and punish officials who committed human rights abuses, including inflammatory racial rhetoric against Afrikaners and other racial minorities, or violence against racial minorities.”

The U.S. criticism of South Africa’s domestic affairs is the latest in a series of tense diplomatic exchanges between the two countries since President Donald Trump was elected to a second term.

During a state visit to the White House in May, Trump confronted President Cyril Ramaphosa with false claims that South Africa had been illegally occupying the farms of white Afrikaner farmers. The administration even speeded up the visa application processes for Afrikaners who wanted to relocate to the U.S as refugees.

Along with suspending financial aid and imposing 30% tariffs on South Africa’s exports to the U.S., Trump has denounced the country’s stance on the Israel-Hamas conflict.

South African Ambassador Ebrahim Rasool was expelled by the U.S. for his criticism of Trump, who has hinted that he may not attend the G20 summit of world leaders scheduled to take place in Johannesburg in November.

The Afrikaans trade union Solidarieit, which was criticized by Ramaphosa over a recent visit to Washington, has announced new plans to visit the U.S. in September to meet with the Department of State and other parties to discuss abolishing racial-redress laws, reestablishing diplomatic ties, and creating a fair trade agreement between the two countries.