December 17, 2025 | 06:47 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - South Africa has arrested seven Kenyans for illegally working in the country on a United States program to resettle white Afrikaners, officials said Wednesday.
"They were arrested and issued with deportation orders, and will be prohibited from entering South Africa again for a five-year period," the Department of Home Affairs said on Wednesday.
US President Donald Trump, earlier this year, accused South Africa of discriminating against white minorities, especially Afrikaners, even suggesting they might be subject to a "genocide," and prioritizing them for a refugee resettlement program.
South Africa's government, rights groups and prominent Afrikaners have dismissed his claim as baseless.
What happened at the refugee processing facility?
The Kenyans, who were in South Africa on tourist visas according to the Department of Home Affairs, were employed by an resettlement support center that fast-tracked the processing of refugee applications.
They were detained during a Tuesday raid at a Johannesburg facility for working while on tourist visas, violating their entry conditions, the home affairs department said.
Two US officials were also briefly detained, according to US news reports.
"We are seeking immediate clarification from the South African government and expect full cooperation and accountability," Tommy Pigott, principal deputy spokesperson for the US State Department, said.
The South African Department Home Affairs said no US official was arrested and there was no interference with the "refugee" program.
"The presence of foreign officials apparently coordinating with undocumented workers naturally raises serious questions about intent and diplomatic protocol," it added.
How many Afrikaners are migrating to the US?
Afrikaners are a white ethnic minority, largely descended from Dutch, German and French settlers. Afrikaner leaders ruled South Africa during the brutal apartheid regime of racial segregation that often saw the violent repression of Black South Africans.
After apartheid ended, the vast majority of Afrikaners chose to stay in South Africa rather than leave.
Despite being widely debunked, claims of a "white genocide" in South Africa have circulated for years in far-right forums. Trump cited it in February as a reason for cutting aid to South Africa.
Relations between Washington and Pretoria reached a low when his administration offered refugee status to Afrikaners.
Only a tiny number took up the offer, with around 1,000 expected to travel to the US this year.
Despite this, the US boycotted a Group of 20 summit in Johannesburg, alleging without evidence that white farmers were "being killed and slaughtered, and their land and farms are being illegally confiscated."
The South African government, which includes Afrikaners, has vehemently denied all the claims.
Read: Ramaphosa Responds After Trump Excludes South Africa from 2026 G20
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