The United Nations Human Rights Office has condemned US President Donald Trump’s remarks alleging a “white genocide” in South Africa, describing the claim as “wholly inappropriate.”
Speaking in Geneva on Friday, UN spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani cautioned against the misuse of such a grave term, stressing the need for a deep understanding of its historical and legal implications.
“These are extremely serious matters,” Shamdasani said. “To use the term ‘genocide’ without full awareness of its meaning, particularly in the context of South Africa’s past, is completely inappropriate.”
Trump made the controversial statement during a meeting at the White House on Wednesday with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.
The US leader presented videos and articles he claimed were evidence of systematic attacks on white farmers in South Africa.
However, Ramaphosa rejected the legitimacy of much of the content, with at least one article shown featuring an image taken in the Democratic Republic of Congo — not South Africa — suggesting a distortion of facts.
Although South Africa continues to struggle with high levels of violent crime, statistics do not support claims that white citizens are disproportionately targeted.
In 2023, the Afrikaner advocacy group AfriForum recorded 49 farm-related murders, regardless of the victims’ ethnic backgrounds.
By contrast, South African police reported a total of 27,621 murders across the country between April 2023 and March 2024, highlighting the relative scale of violence.
Despite these figures, the Trump administration earlier this month approved refugee status for over 50 Afrikaners — descendants of Dutch settlers — while simultaneously restricting asylum access for most other applicants worldwide.
