49 Afrikaners Set To Leave South Africa for the United States of America

• The first group of Afrikaners who have taken up US president Donald Trump's offer to become refugees in the US will leave the country on 11 May 2025
• the 49 Afrikaners are expected to arrive in the US on 12May following claims of white genocide and forced land expropriations
• The government said it respected their freedom of movement, and South Africans shared their views

Tebogo Mokwena, a dedicated Briefly News current affairs journalist, contributed coverage of international and local social issues like health, corruption, education, unemployment, labour, service delivery protests and immigration in South Africa during his seven years at Daily Sun and Vutivi Business News.

OR TAMBO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT — The first group of Afrikaners who have accepted Donald Trump's offer to be refugees in the United States of America will leave on 11 May 2025.

49 Afrikaners to leave SA

According to eNCA, the 49 Afrikaners were at the OR Tambo International Airport and prepared to leave the country. They were processed and were expected to travel to the United States on a privately chartered flight. The Afrikaners will be welcomed by members of Trump's administration.

The spokesperson of the Department of Transport, Collen Msibi said the group of 49 people are the only group of Afrikaners who applied to relocate to the United States through the Department. He said the department received the application on 5 May and the application was approved. He said the application had to state the route of the flight and number of passengers.

Vetting is also another condition for the application to be processed. He said he is not certain whether they have been vetted for criminal backgrounds. The flight from the United States took off from Texas. They will be relocated and accommodated in Virginia.

What you need to know about the Afrikaner relocation

• Donald Trump offered Afrikaners refugee status when he signed an executive order granting them refugee status
• AfriForum declined the offer and asserted that Afrikaners want to stay and build South Africa
• US secretary of state Marco Rubio pulled out of the G20 Summit and accused the South African government of committing horrible crimes against Afrikaners
• The Economic Freedom Fighters slammed Trump after signing the executive order and said Afrikaners who relocate to the US must have their citizenship revoked
• A group of disgruntled Afrikaners gathered outside the American embassy in Pretoria to protest against Julius Malema singing Kill the Boer

South Africans weigh in

Netizens commenting on @eNCA's X tweet shared their views.

Kane said:

"I hope we won't hear any complains about the ANC and black people anymore."

Sandile said:

"The majority of US citizens are not happy with the Afrikaners coming to the US. This is not going to end well. I came across a lot of American videos on TikTok. They're not happy at all."

Trail of thoughts said:

"These are primarily individuals who lack motivation and failed to capitalise on opportunities as avenues to success wee available."

Maryam asked:

"Has anyone ever seen the government at the airport anywhere, where people are persecuted and fearing for their life from the same government, assisting them with their refugee flight?"

Fiona Clayton said:

"We need a Netflix reality show that follows their journey to a better life."

DIRCO responds to Afrikaners relocating to the US

In a related article, Briefly News reported that the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) slammed the process of Afrikaners relocating to the United States.

DIRCO said the move was politicised and said it engaged with the Donald Trump administration to understand what the Afrikaners are classified as.

Source: Briefly News