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Watch: Thousands gather in Pretoria to support Trump

Thousands gathered in Pretoria to deliver a memorandum to the U.S. Embassy, voicing support for President Donald Trump's stance.

Thousands of people gathered in Pretoria on Saturday morning to present a memorandum to the U.S. Embassy in support of President Donald Trump’s recent stance on South Africa, condemning 118 local laws they believe unfairly target white citizens and affect the economy.

Activist and organizer of the gathering, Willem Petzer, said more than 3 000 people gathered on Saturday.

“We gave a memorandum to the United States Embassy in which we compiled all the evidence of farm murders against South Africans, as well as all racial laws against white South Africans, and also a chapter on the ideological history of the South African Communist Party-ANC government of South Africa.”

He said the memorandum, supported by over 138,000 signatures from people expressing their support for the American president’s recent directive regarding South Africa, stated that there are 118 South African laws aimed at targeting white people and removing them from the economy.

It also referred to the appropriation of mineral and water rights, land, and black economic empowerment policies. The memorandum also focused on crime and how it affects all South Africans, but especially farmers.

“There is no politician who actively encourages the murder of any other group; there are no calls to slit the throats of any other group. The only group being targeted is whites,” he said in his speech.

Regarding land expropriation, Petzer said that unless a person can be positively identified as a legitimate owner whose land has been stolen from them, it is not fair to punish someone for a crime committed by another person years ago.

“Two wrongs will never make it right,” Petzer told foreign and English media, explaining that there is no justice in taking someone’s property due to something someone else did.”

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This comes after Trump’s decision to cut financial aid to South Africa following his criticism of the country’s treatment of the white Afrikaner minority and its December 2023 filing of a genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

This move has raised concerns among experts, who worry it could lead to the end of South Africa’s preferential access to the U.S. market under the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA).

Meanwhile, President Cyril Ramaphosa called for national unity.

According to a report by Business Tech, he said:

“We need to stand united as a nation, particularly now when we are facing a harsh global wind,” Ramaphosa told lawmakers in Cape Town in a reply to a debate on his state-of-the-nation address on Thursday.

“I’d like to repeat we will also not be bullied by anyone in the country or outside.”

Also read: R20 000 reward offered for information on brutal killing of Raygun

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Corné van Zyl

Corné van Zyl is a seasoned journalist and currently a senior reporter at Rekord, with a wealth of experience across various media platforms. She began her career after studying journalism at the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) and first honed her skills at Media24. Corné’s career took her to Beeld, Sondag newspaper, and the South African Press Association (SAPA), where she built a strong foundation in news reporting. In her free time, Corné enjoys spending time with her family outdoors, embracing life and creating lasting memories with her loved ones.
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