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The Solidarity Movement, which includes AfriForum and Solidarity, today announced five proposed answers to the five asks of the US. Last year, the US government put five asks to the South African government about issues that had sparked a dispute between the two countries.
 
The Solidarity Movement’s five answers aim to find solutions to the political and diplomatic dispute between the two countries. We are convinced that maintaining good relations with the US, just as with other powers, is in South Africa’s national interest.
 
The Movement’s answers address issues such as racial laws, rural safety, “Kill the Boer”, property rights and the refugee programme. The aim of the answers is not merely to restore trade relations, but to find solutions to the critical areas of concern in South Africa. We wish to state clearly that our point of departure is to choose South Africa’s side, and not that of the Whitehouse or Luthuli House. We also feel strongly about upholding South Africa’s sovereignty, yet we believe this cannot be equated with ANC sovereignty. Voters voted in favour of a Government of National Unity (GNU). We believe that if the other parties within the GNU are involved in formulating foreign policy, a solution that falls within the framework of the Constitution and a non-aligned foreign policy, can be found quickly.
 
It is in South Africa’s interest to find answers to the US asks. We believe the solutions must first be found in Pretoria and subsequently in Washington. We have major differences with the government, but we love the country, and we are deeply concerned about the impact of prolonged diplomatic disputes on South Africa’s economy and international image.
 
Months of discussions
 
The five proposed answers are the result of months of effort, which included visits to the United States, lengthy discussions with the South African Presidency, and ongoing engagement with the US Embassy in Pretoria as well as with decision-makers in Washington. We plan to continue further discussions on this matter with both governments.
 
We believe the governments can find common ground. We ask that the conditions be put in place to de-escalate tensions and to resume dialogue between the governments. Part of this involves a bona fide commitment to find solutions and the will to take the decisions that make this possible.
 
Our five answers fall within South Africa’s constitutional framework while they also address the US asks at the same time.
 
These are not demands or a list of grievances, but practical answers. The US government has given broad approval in principle to our five answers, and we believe that, if the political will exists, they could also be acceptable to the South African government.
 
We are deeply concerned that the action taken against South Africa will intensify. When South Africa is punished for poor policy and hostile attitudes towards our trade partners, it is not the ministers who have to foot the bill, but the fruit farmer in the Western Cape, the factory worker at an automotive plant in the Eastern Cape and the businessperson in the Vaal Triangle who are paying the price. We perceive the ANC as governing against its own people.
 
The South African government makes it very difficult to reach a settlement between the two countries. There is a long history of choices exercised, and statements made against the US government. Tensions between South Africa and the US have been mounting for over 15 years, since the Obama years and the country’s accession to BRICS in 2010. Recent statements by South Africa’s Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Ronald Lamola, serve as yet more confirmation of this. This is a setback for the Solidarity Movement’s long-running advocacy in the US for South Africa’s AGOA participation.
 
There is also a direct link between the signing into law of the Expropriation Act and President Trump’s executive order of 7 February 2025. South Africa’s foreign policy has also consistently alienated the US administration.
 
Notwithstanding this link, attempts have been made to blame the Solidarity Movement, AfriForum and Solidarity for deteriorating relations. We reject this looking for a scapegoat for the ANC’s poor diplomatic relations with the US. We refuse to be a pawn in a diplomatic game of chess between two governments. Although we are not the cause of the problem, we will cooperate to find a solution.
 
The US remains South Africa’s largest trade partner with 500 000 jobs depending on trade with the US. We are deeply concerned that stricter punitive measures could threaten South Africa’s AGOA participation. A review process to determine which African countries will qualify for AGOA participation next year is currently being undertaken in the White House. Events of the past two weeks have created a significant possibility that South Africa might be excluded from AGOA. The White House is likely to make an announcement in this regard before November. Therefore, there is an urgent need to find a solution.
 
Finding a solution to the dispute between the two countries has nothing to do with South Africa’s sovereignty, and it certainly does not threaten the country’s right to decide on its own affairs. However, as a sovereign role-player every government has a right but also a duty towards its citizens to find solutions that are in the country’s interests.
 
The Solidarity Movement’s answers can be summarised as follows:

Race-based laws
 
The government must agree to phase out race-based laws in accordance with international conventions. In the interim, race-neutral equity equivalents, which will replace ownership requirements, will be accepted for both multinational and local companies. The agreement between Solidarity and the government, reached under the supervision of the International Labour Organisation (ILO), and which places restrictions on race-based laws in the workplace, will be published in the Government Gazette.
 
Race-neutral methods of employee empowerment will be accepted as the preferred mechanisms for empowerment through ownership. During the phasing-out process, individuals’ socio-economic status, rather than race, will serve as criterion. Young people born after 1994 will also be considered part of the designated group.
 
Rural safety
 
The government will declare farm murders and crime in rural areas as priority crimes similar to how gang violence and rhino poaching are dealt with. An official community safety partnership will be established in which the SAPS, the private security industry and community organisations such as AfriForum will have equal representation.
 
The SAPS’s existing Rural Safety Strategy will be expanded to enable significantly greater involvement by community safety initiatives. AfriForum has already drafted a comprehensive community safety plan for rural security which has been presented to the South African and US governments. A national community safety forum will be established to monitor the implementation of the safety plan. The US government will assist by providing funding, expertise, and equipment via this forum.
 
‘Kill the Boer’
 
In the present-day context, chanting “Kill the Boer” is one of the most serious burning issues. There should be an agreement that Pres. Ramaphosa and senior government leaders must unconditionally denounce the chanting of “Kill the Boer”, as well as any other hate-related slogans directed at minorities.
 
It is not our experience that a large-scale, government-driven “genocide” is taking place; however, we do experience that the ANC is targeting the continued existence of Afrikaners through comprehensive racial legislation, the downplaying of farm murders, attacks on our language and culture through legislation such as BELA, and the violation of agreements the government entered into with us regarding these matters.
 
Refugee Programme
 
The refugee programme already exists. The US government and the South African government must agree that individuals wishing to avail themselves of the programme be allowed to follow the process without prejudice. Fewer than 1% of Afrikaners are likely to settle in USA. The Solidarity Movement is not involved in the programme because we believe our future lies in South Africa and we are working on finding solutions to face the challenges here.
 
Agreement must be reached that a direct channel be established between the US administration and the Solidarity Movement, with a view to, among other things, the creation of an Afrikaner development fund. This fund could assist in developing training and cultural infrastructure for the Afrikaner community.
 
Discussions will also be held between the Solidarity Movement and the US administration on exporting skills to that country through online work, without the need for people to leave South Africa.
 
Expropriation without compensation
 
The US government and the South African government acknowledge the pending court case in this regard but remain of the opinion that a settlement is preferable to litigation. In light of this, Section 12(3) of the Expropriation Act should be deleted. Section 19(2) should be amended to prevent the expropriation of land before a court has given a final ruling. Further amendments should be made to ensure that property rights are protected as stipulated by the South African Constitution.

Issued by the Chairperson of the Solidarity Movement, Flip Buys, the Chief Executive of AfriForum, Kallie Kriel; and the Chief Executive of Solidarity, Dr Dirk Hermann