Joshua Meservey Believes Zondo Commission Evidence Would Help in Sanctioning ANC Leaders Easier

• Joshua Meservey, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, weighed in on possible sanctions against African National Congress leaders
• The US–South Africa Bilateral Relations Review Act of 2025 allows the United States to punish South African government officials
• The Bill, which AfriForum and Solidarity welcomed, awaits further consideration by the full House and Senate in the USA

Briefly News journalist Byron Pillay 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.

WASHINGTON, DC – While a United States Bill that would allow for sanctions against African National Congress leaders has yet to be passed, a senior policy analyst on Africa said it won’t be hard to identify who to target.

Joshua Meservey, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, said that thanks to the Zondo Commission, it wouldn’t be difficult to determine who should be punished first.

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The US–South Africa Bilateral Relations Review Act of 2025 will give the US power to punish South African government officials and ANC leaders based on credible evidence of corruption or human rights abuses.

What did Meservey say about the sanctions?

During an interview on Monday, 18 August 2025, Meservey, who has championed the Bill, said that the Zondo Commission report provided the evidence.

“The Zondo Commission named names, for instance. So, you could almost throw a dart, and whichever ANC officials you hit with that dart, you could sanction them, with very little work involved, because the corruption is so well documented and so obvious,” he said.

He added that while there could be some minor repercussions for the country as a result, there would be less collateral damage with the individual sanctions.

The Bill received support in the House Foreign Affairs Committee, with a vote of 34–16. It now awaits further consideration by the full House and Senate.

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What is the view in South Africa about the Bill?

The ANC has remained defiant in the face of the Bill, with Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula previously daring the US to go ahead with it.

“If it means we are going to suffer through sanctions as leaders of the ANC, let it be,” Mbalula said.

Lobby groups AfriForum and Solidarity have welcomed the idea, with Solidarity suggesting that those who sing the Kill the Boer song should be first to be sanctioned.

What you need to know about US and SA tensions

• In February 2025, Trump cut all funding to South Africa, saying that terrible things were happening in the country.
• AfriForum and Solidarity travelled to the United States to meet the Trump administration to ask for assistance.
• The US State Department said South Africa is making decisions not in the best interests of the US.
• Ebrahim Rasool was expelled from the US after his comments about Trump's leadership.
• President Cyril Ramaphosa was optimistic after a delegation from South Africa met with the Trump administration.
• Donald Trump said he would not attend the G20 Meeting in South Africa because some citizens are still being persecuted.

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US Congressman defends South Africa

Briefly News reported that a US Congressman objected to a bill aimed at imposing sanctions on South Africa.

Jonathan Luther Jackson, who is the godson of Martin Luther King Jr, defended the country against claims made by Donald Trump.

Jackson spoke about how the country was the largest US trading partner in Africa, and had the right to an independent point of view.

Eswatini police shoot and kill suspects who allegedly murdered South African police officer

Meanwhile, Briefly News reported that the Eswatini police shot and killed two suspects who were wanted in connection with the murder of a police officer in Mpumalanga.

The suspects were gunned down in a cross-border operation, which was led by the South African Police Service's Mpumalanga Provincial Commissioner Zeph Mkhwanazi.

According to SAPS, three suspects escaped from Mpumalanga and headed into Eswatini in the Shiselweni Region. The suspects were part of a group of seven robbers who allegedly shot and killed Sergeant Lawrence Mtshweni during an armed robbery at a Schoemansdal shop in Mpumalanga. One suspect was arrested on the following day. However, the other suspects escaped.

Source: Briefly News