On 7th November, the US President Donald Trump announced that no official of his government will attend the G20 summit happening in Johannesburg, on November 22nd. The announcement rescinded a previous Trump proclamation where he canceled his planned visit to South Africa for the G20 summit and charged the US vice president for representing the US in the summit.
However, on 7th November, Trump wrote on his Truth Social account that “it was a total disgrace that the G20 will be held in South Africa.” He went further, saying that “Afrikaners (people who are descended from Dutch settlers and also French and German immigrants) are being killed and slaughtered, and their land and farms are being illegally confiscated.” Therefore, “no US government official will attend as long as these human rights abuses continue.”
The cancellation of the G20 summit by Donald Trump has clearly revealed the rift between Washington and Johannesburg. But how did Trump fall out with the largest American trading partner on the African continent?
The ICJ Case
The antagonism between the United States and South Africa began escalating after the latter brought the case against Israel for the prevention and punishment of genocide in Gaza before the International Court of Justice on 29th December, 2023. The South African government highlighted during the hearing of the case that Israel was committing a genocide against the people of Gaza and contravening the 1948 United Nations Genocide Convention. Soon, the overwhelming majority of the third world joined South Africa’s case in pushing for peace in Gaza and punishment for the perpetrators of the genocide.
However, many governments in the Western world came to Israel’s rescue by calling South Africa’s case baseless. Foremost among them was the United States, which has consistently cited Israel’s right to self-defense as a paramount necessity against terrorism. The US officials rejected the allegations of genocide, calling them ‘unfounded’, ‘meritless’, and ‘counterproductive’. The US also accused South Africa of playing the role of Hamas’ legal team and cut financial aid to the country.
Despite the bullying, cutting of financial aid, and straining of diplomatic relations, the South African government has remained adamant and steadfast in pursuing the case against Israel. This principled approach, nonetheless, caught Trump’s ire, which was further magnified by South Africa’s land reforms.
Read More: US Absence From G20 Summit ‘Their Loss’ South Africa Says
A Landmark Land Reform?
On 23rd January, the South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, after years of deliberation, signed the Expropriation Act. The Act sought to rectify the historical injustices of the apartheid apparatus in the country that disenfranchised the local Black population by limiting the land owned by Blacks.
The apartheid regime in South Africa had developed, in part, by building on the racist legacy of colonialism that discriminated against the native Black population. The Natives Land Act of 1913, for instance, restricted the Black ownership of land in the country to just 7 percent. This discrimination persisted during the apartheid regime with minor changes.
However, the end of apartheid in 1994 did not significantly alter the disparity of land ownership either. In 2017, a land ownership audit found that White South Africans owned more than 70 percent of the farming land in South Africa, whereas the Black population possessed just 4 percent.
The government of South Africa sought to rectify this disparity by introducing the Expropriation Act. Under the Act, the government is able to take hold of any private property that remains unused. The government has deliberately targeted people who hold land without any public use and wait for the prices to soar to sell the land at a profit. The Act doesn’t mention race at all, but because most of the land in the country is owned by the White population, many have interpreted the act as racist and targeting the White minority.
The most vocal critic of the Act has been the US president, Donald Trump. On 7th February, Trump signed an executive order that halted all financial aid to South Africa and accused the government of “confiscating land and mistreating certain classes of people.” He also ordered his administration to promote the resettlement of Afrikaners “escaping government-sponsored race-based discrimination.” Following this, the US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, also cancelled his planned visit to South Africa for G20 talks.
The Path to Boycott
This mix of South Africa’s internal and external policy eventually culminated in Trump’s boycott of the G20 summit to be held on 22nd November in Johannesburg. The US president has said that no official of the US government would be attending the summit.
The combined effect of financial sanctions and boycotting of the G20 would definitely hurt the prospects of a country that is heavily dependent on foreign aid and investment for the functioning of its economy. Perhaps, for this very same reason, the US president doubled down on his efforts to bully South Africa into submission.
Read More: US Boycotts G20 in South Africa Over ‘White Genocide’ Claim
However, in spite of Trump’s actions, South Africa has shown resilience again by announcing to go ahead with the summit without the US. Speaking outside parliament, the South African president said that the United States’ absence is “their loss.” He further argued that the US should understand that “boycott politics doesn’t work” and that “the US was giving up the very important role that they should be playing as the biggest economy in the world.”
Nevertheless, he was clear that South Africa was not going to be bullied and that, as a nation with a unique history of resilience against racism and bigotry, they will continue their struggle to make the world more equitable and just for all.
Muhammad Omer Rafiq
Muhammad Omer Rafiq is a student of politics with a passion for making sense of our tumultuous political world that always seems to be on the edge. He recently graduated in International Relations from Lahore Garrison University. He can be reached at muhammadomerrafiq@gmail.com
