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S. Africa welcomes Australia's retraction of land redistribution comments

Xinhua,April 02, 2018 Adjust font size:

CAPE TOWN, April 2 (Xinhua) -- South Africa on Monday welcomed Australia's retraction of comments by a cabinet minister about granting visas to "prosecuted" white South African farmers.

"We welcome the assurance by the Australian government as reported in the media that the comments made by their Home Affairs Minister are not in line with Australian immigration policy," Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Lindiwe Sisulu said in a statement.

Sisulu said South Africa's diplomatic channels remained open to those who wished to seek clarity on South Africa's policy positions.

Last month, Australia's Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said he would prioritize granting visas to "prosecuted" white South African farmers who deserve special attention from his government over South Africa's land redistribution.

His remarks prompted Sisulu to summon Australian High Commissioner to South Africa, Adam McCarthy to express South Africa's displeasure.

Last week, both Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Foreign Minister Julie Bishop retracted Dutton's offer to help white South African farmers.

In her Monday statement, Sisulu said South Africa welcomes Australia's condemnation of the unfortunate comments by South African and other international organizations and leaders.

"We must emphasize, as we have stated before, that no one is being persecuted in South Africa, including white farmers," Sisulu said.

She called upon all non-governmental organizations to "desist from spreading untruths and misleading information."

South Africa has initiated a process to amend the Constitution to pave way for the appropriation of the land without compensation, giving rise to concerns about the fate of white South African farmers who own most of the land in the country.

The South African government has emphasized that the land appropriation would be done within the confines of the law and not disturb the country's economic performance. Enditem

 

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