ANC Blasts AfriForum and Kallie Kriel, Accuses Group of Undermining the Country’s Sovereignty
- The African National Congress (ANC) has condemned Kallie Kriel and AfriForum over its statement about a raid at a facility processing applications by Afrikaners
- The party said that the group's statement was being twisted into a false narrative of racial persecution and undermined the country's sovereignty
- Kriel has since responded to the statement, describing it as blatant lies and intimidation, alleging that some in the media were supporting these actions
Source: Getty Images
Byron Pillay, a Briefly News journalist, has dedicated a decade to reporting on the South African political landscape, crime, and social issues. He spent 10 years working for the Northern Natal Courier before transitioning to online journalism.
GAUTENG – The African National Congress (ANC) has blasted AfriForum for its stance on a raid at a facility processing applications by Afrikaners for refugee status in the United States.
The facility in Johannesburg was raided by officials from the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) on Tuesday, 16 December 2025. The facility was raided as the US was accused of using illegal workers to process refugee applications.
It sparked further tensions between the United States and South Africa, with the US accusing the country of interfering in its efforts to offer asylum status to Afrikaners. The US recently announced that it would only be accepting Afrikaners as refugees going forward.
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AfriForum, through Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Kallie Kriel, also condemned the actions of South African officials, claiming that US staff were detained and that Afrikaner applicants at the facility were harassed and intimidated.
ANC responds to the allegations made against officials
The ANC has since released a statement about the incident, condemning Kriel and AfriForum.
The party said that Kriel’s statement constituted a reckless, racist, and deliberate campaign to undermine South Africa's sovereignty.
“It discredits lawful state institutions and incites fear through manufactured disinformation. This conduct is no longer fringe rhetoric; it is a calculated political project aimed at destabilising our democracy and fracturing social cohesion,” the ANC statement read.
The party stated that the lawful intervention by the DHA against unauthorised foreign nationals was cynically distorted by AfriForum into a false narrative of racial persecution.
“This is not a misunderstanding of facts but an intentional attempt to poison public discourse, incite racial hysteria, and portray South Africa as a hostile state to external right-wing networks. Such behaviour is unpatriotic and dangerous,” the statement continued.
Source: Twitter
Kriel responds to ANC statement
The AfriForum CEO has since responded to the statement, describing it as blatant lies and intimidation. He also said there were some in the media who were actively participating in the ANC’s intimidation efforts.
Kriel maintained that AfriForum would not be silenced by these actions, but it would motivate them to fight even harder.
Seven Kenyan nationals arrested at US facility
Briefly News reported that the DHA arrested seven Kenyan nationals for working in South Africa without legal authorisation.
Intelligence reports indicated that the Kenyan nationals had recently entered the country on tourist visas and had taken up employment
The seven Kenyan nationals were working at a facility in Johannesburg, processing applications for Afrikaner refugees to the USA.
Source: Briefly News
