A provincial council member of South Africa’s opposition party, Freedom Front Plus, is seeking resettlement in the United States under a refugee programme initiated by former U.S. President Donald Trump, citing fears of future persecution despite acknowledging he has not experienced direct harm.
SJ Du Venage, a 56-year-old councillor in South Africa’s Western Cape, said his decision was driven by longstanding anxieties about the safety of white South Africans, concerns he says date back to the final years of apartheid.
“I grew up fearing what would happen if white South Africans lost control,” he said, adding that those fears have persisted even in the absence of personal mistreatment.
Du Venage, a former youth leader in the far-right Conservative Party during the apartheid era, is among Afrikaners applying under the U.S. resettlement scheme, which Washington says is designed to support individuals facing racial persecution claims.
However, the South African government rejects allegations of systemic persecution of white citizens, describing such claims as unfounded.
Du Venage said he underwent a seven-hour interview with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) in Pretoria in February and has since completed medical and background checks. He is now awaiting a final decision after selling his home in preparation for possible relocation.
He said his application is based on fear of future harm rather than past incidents, which he believes is sufficient under the programme’s criteria.
He cited a threatening message received after organising a memorial for a white farmer killed in 2020, an incident that had become a rallying point in debates around farm attacks.
“I was asked who I think wants to kill me, and I don’t really know,” he said.
Farm murders in South Africa represent a small share of the country’s overall homicide rate, which disproportionately affects Black citizens. Nonetheless, such cases have been widely amplified by right-wing political movements both domestically and abroad.
According to U.S. State Department figures, more than 6,000 South Africans have been admitted under refugee pathways since last year, with Washington increasing its annual intake cap to 17,500.
South African officials and policy analysts have dismissed claims of targeted white persecution. Fanie Du Toit of the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation said narratives of “white victimhood” are being amplified by political lobbying groups.
“There is a very well-organised lobby emphasising white victimhood, and that is being hugely emboldened,” he said.
Survey data from the institute indicates that most white South Africans report feeling safe in their communities, though perceptions differ across racial groups.
Within Afrikaner political circles, support for emigration remains limited. Freedom Front Plus leader Corné Mulder has previously said most Afrikaners prefer international assistance within South Africa rather than relocation abroad.
Du Venage, who serves on internal party structures rather than as an elected representative, said he expects challenges adapting to life in the United States but hopes to settle in a region with a climate similar to Cape Town.
“The feedback is that a small percentage are lucky enough to land in good places, but many people are struggling,” he said.
Source:Reuters
