SOUTH AFRICA
Breaking a Taboo
Australian Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton has raised hackles in South Africa by proposing special visa policies for “persecuted” white farmers – whom the ruling African National Congress is still trying to replace with their black counterparts, nearly 15 years after the end of Apartheid.
“We have the potential to help some of these people that are being persecuted,” Dutton said, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported
South Africa called Dutton’s comments “sad” and “regrettable,” the Guardian reported.
A government spokesperson also emphasized that the process of land redistribution “is very important to address the imbalances of the past. But it is going to be done legally, and with due consideration of the economic impact and impact on individuals.”
Australian media has recently featured a series of reports claiming numerous and increasing cases involving the murder and rape of white farmers. The Guardian cited a leading South African tracker of crime statistics as saying there’s no evidence to suggest white farmers are more often targeted for violence than any other group, but that assessment is hotly contested locally, too.
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